Unbroken
by Zephyros-Phoenix
Summary: COMPLETE. Before she could be identified as the Avatar, Rai was taken from her home and sold into slavery. Now free and hardened by her experiences, Rai lives in hiding from the White Lotus, believing the Avatar is no longer needed and the lifestyle and duties are simply another form of slavery. She refuses to bend to the will of others, but what happens to things that don't bend?
1. Prologue

**Well, here by popular demand, a story about my Avatar OC, who is the Avatar after Korra. Pictures on deviantart! Also, these chapters posted on deviantart will also get a little companion picture to go with it ;) Just a quick doodle of a scene that happens in the chapter.**

 **Oh, and um, this story contains content involving blood, violence, death, sexual references and other themes that may not be suitable for young readers. Reader discretion is advised.**

* * *

A young girl with short black hair and brown eyes carefully and slowly crept out of a tent in the middle of the night. She poked her head out the folds of the tent opening, looking to her left and right to check if the coast was clear before emerging. In her arms, she carried a bottle, bowl and small loaf of bread as she tiptoed through the campgrounds as quietly as possible so as not to wake anyone. She stepped on a twig, rousing one of the sleeping komodo rhinos in the stables. "Shh!" she hushed, "go back to sleep." She sighed in relief as the great beast turned away uninterested in what she was doing and went back to sleep. She picked up the pace a bit until she reached the center of the campgrounds, where another girl with long, wavy black hair was tied. This other girl kneeled in front of a large wooden board in the shape of an X and her arms were raised above her head, chained to the board behind her. Her arms and legs were littered with bruises and cuts, some fresh and some so old they were now scars while her wrists looked torn and cut from the metal cuffs. Her body was limp and her head hung heavy, but her chest rose and fell at a steady pace.

"Rai, Rai wake up," the first girl whispered. She set down the contents in her arms - marred with her own cuts and bruises, but nowhere near the degree and quantity of this "Rai" - and carefully and tenderly lifted up the bound girl's face. As she cupped the unconscious girl's face in her hands, she gently rubbed her thumbs across her cheek as the sleeping girl stirred. There was dried blood on the side of her face coming from her left eyebrow, where a cut had only just begun to heal.

"Uh…" she groaned weakly, slowly opening her bright green eyes. "K-Kala?" she asked quietly, her voice so feeble that she sounded gravely ill.

"Shh, don't speak. Save your energy," Kala whispered gently, hushing Rai. Kala removed her hands from Rai's face as the latter began to sit up more on her sore knees. Kala opened the bottle and poured the water inside into the ceramic bowl she brought with her and held it up to Rai's face. "Here, drink," she said. Rai said nothing as she fell forward, her dry and parched mouth eagerly drinking in the cool water. She panted heavily when she finished the entire bowl, her thirst finally quenched after nearly three days or being chained to this board. Kala pulled the bowl away and exchanged it for the small loaf of bread, tearing off a bit of it and holding it up to Rai's mouth.

While her desperate thirst compelled her to drink without hesitation, Rai did not eat the bread right away. "Where did you get this, Kala?" she asked.

"It doesn't matter. Just eat!" Kala insisted.

"Kala, if you get caught, Master Goro will-"

"I don't care!" Kala whispered loudly, before quieting herself. "He's the one who put you here in the first place. We all barely get enough to eat as it is, so how does he expect you to survive being tied up like this for a week without food or water?"

Rai was a stubborn slave; she fought and resisted every step of the way, and that ferocity and stubbornness was part of the reason Goro bought her. According to him, breaking things was his favorite pastime. And every time Rai refused or did something wrong, he would beat her, cut her, do everything in his power to break her. But she still resisted; she would not give in, which is how she found herself here, tied to this post for three days and to endure four more as punishment.

"Kala…" Kala was Rai's friend, almost like a little sister to her. She remembered when they were first purchased together and how terrified Kala was. Rai did her best to comfort her and eventually began looking out for Kala. She was a slow worker and rather clumsy, but Rai always covered for her and on more than one occasion, took a beating meant for her.

"Just eat, Rai, please," Kala begged. Rai sighed in defeat and opened her mouth for the bread. She was thankful that Kala was ripping off pieces and feeding them to her. She was so weak, she wasn't sure if she even had the strength to bite into the bread herself and the pieces Kala ripped off were small enough for her to swallow without chewing.

This continued for the next three nights: a bowl of water and a small loaf of bread. It was all Kala could afford to sneak and though it was little, it was enough to give Rai the strength she needed to keep going. Every time Rai cautioned her of the risks, Kala merely brushed them off and reaffirmed that all she cared about was Rai. On what was to be her last night bound to this board, Kala was suddenly yanked back from Rai by the back of her worn out shirt. Her sudden cry quickly alerted Rai as she struggled against the metal cuffs that bound her. But all she ended up doing was aggravating her swollen wrists even further.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" one of the bandits grinned as he effortlessly held Kala in the air with one hand. "Goro ain't gonna like this. Oi! Everyone, wake up!" he shouted, as bandits slowly and tiredly began coming out of the tents. Some lit torches to light up the camp as Goro, the bandit leader, a large broad shouldered and muscular man with dark skin, long brown hair tied in many braids and blue eyes emerged. His entire torso and both arms were covered in ornate black tribal tattoos.

"What's going on here?" he bellowed loudly, stepping forward as the gathered bandits and slaves stepped back.

"I caught this slave giving the other one food and water!"

Goro looked at Kala, who stared up at him with tear-filled and frightened eyes before shifting his gaze to Rai, who only glared at him angrily and looked as if she was ready to burst out of her restraints. "So, that's why you haven't broken yet. You got your little friend to bring you food when everyone was asleep!" Goro slowly moved towards Rai and bent down to her level, taking her chin roughly in his large hand.

"No, she didn't tell me to do anything! It was my idea!" Kala shouted, earning Goro's attention as he released Rai's chin.

"Was it now?" Goro looked at the bandit holding Kala and nodded his head. The bandit understood and nodded back before throwing Kala roughly onto the ground and savagely beating her. Kala whimpered and cried out at every strike and desperately curled herself up into a ball to protect herself, but it was all in vain.

"No! Stop it! Leave her alone!" Rai shouted, pulling against her restraints so hard that the metal began cutting into her wrists.

But the bandit kept going, switching between punching and kicking until Kala's arms and legs were covered in bruises. Her face was bruised and swollen and her lip and nose bleeding as she quietly cried muffled tears. Goro raised his hand, signaling to the bandit to stop. "Slaves!" he shouted. At his call, his bandits quickly rounded up all his slaves, nearly a dozen children. "If there is one thing I will not tolerate, it is disobedience. Consider this," he said, gesturing to the beaten and crying Kala, "an example of what will happen should ANY of you defy me!" The other slaves flinched at his shouting and trembled in fear as Goro turned back to his subordinate and nodded again, initiating the beating once more.

"No! She's had enough! Stop! Please!" Rai protested. But her words did nothing to stop the bandit savagely beating her friend. Goro knelt beside her once more and roughly grabbed Rai's chin with his hand and the back of her head with the other.

"This is what will happen every time you defy me!" he laughed as Rai watched helplessly as her friend was beaten. If she could just break free of her restraints, she could do something! If this kept going on, then Kala would-

Suddenly, Kala's body went limp and she no longer held herself in a tight ball. Rai gasped in horror as the bandit lightly kicked Kala's body to test her reaction, but Kala made no move, no sound. "K-Kala?" Rai whispered, her eyes wide in shock and dread. "No…" she whimpered as her eyes began tearing up and her body trembled and shook.

"Well, I hope you've learned your lesson," Goro whispered into her ear with a grin before standing up to address his bandits and slaves. Goro's speech was drowned out over the sound of her heart pumping wildly in her ears as her chest suddenly hurt. She fell forward with her eyes closed tightly, hanging by her arms as she began panting heavily and struggled to breath. She coughed and sobbed, unable to hold back her tears any longer. As sweat dripped down her forehead, she suddenly sat up straight and opened her glowing, white eyes wide.

The wind suddenly picked up as Rai effortlessly pulled her shackles free from the board. Goro and the bandits turned when they heard the metal snap and gasped in shock at the sight of her glowing white eyes. Before any of them to could utter a word, Rai thrust her arm forward, shooting a stream of fire directly onto Goro. He didn't have time to react and the flames seared at his flesh. He fell onto his back, crying out in pain as he clutched his arm and shoulder. Some of the bandits tried rushing her with their weapons, but she easily knocked them back with a stomp of her foot, shaking the earth beneath them. A funnel of air surrounded Rai's lower body as she was lifted into the air. A scream from below drew her attention as Rai saw some of the bandits grabbing the other slaves. Narrowing her eyes angrily, Rai raised her hand, causing a protective wall of earth to rise around the other slaves, separating the them from the bandits. Without restraint, she released the full intensity of her powers. Winds rages, earth shook and fire rained down from the sky from her fingertips. Fearing for their lives and terrified by the sheer shock of her powers, the bandits gathered up as much of their gear as they could and fled. As they ran, Rai focused in on one bandit in particular, then who had killed Kala. She raised the earth around his feet, preventing him from fleeing. He tried to pull himself free and began beating away at the rocks with his mace, but it still gave Rai enough time to close in on him. She held out her arms and began moving them in wide, circular motions as crackling, blue lightning formed around her. She drew back her arms, her right hand at the ready and thrust her hand forward, unleashing the bright blue bolt of lightning directly into the bandit's back. The bandit shrieked loudly as the lightning struck him until it finally ceased and his body fell forward, limp. With the rest of the bandits gone, the wind slowly died down and lowered Rai to the ground as her fingertips smoked. Her bangs fell down over her face as she lowered the earth wall protecting the other slaves and her eyes returned to normal.

The other slaves huddled together, afraid. They all watched her intently, unsure of what she was going to do. "Did you see what she did?" one of them cried.

"She's the Avatar!" another gasped bewildered.

Rai was unconcerned with what they were saying and even less concerned with this new revelation and what it meant for her. Instead, she stared at Kala's broken body and slowly stepped towards her. When she reached Kala's body, Rai fell to her knees and began sobbing quietly. With hesitant and trembling fingers, she gripped Kala's shoulder and turned her onto her back. At the sight of her bloody and bruised face and open, lifeless eyes, Rai broke down. The sobs she tried to contain burst out of her, as did her tears like a river breaking through dam. The other slaves sat in silence as they watched Rai grieve. Her trembling fingers gently closed Kala's eyes before she took her body into her arms and hugged the girl's limp form tightly.

* * *

 **Soo... yeah, talk about grim beginning eh?**

 **Anyway, that's just the start. Please let me know what you guys think of the story :)**

 **Also, since I don't have many ideas regarding how the story will progress, I highly encourage you to share any ideas or suggestions you have! It would be much appreciated!**

 **xoxo**


	2. The Vagabond

**I appreciate the feedback so far and hope you guys continue to enjoy the story!**

 **Just to clear up some confusion since many expressed confusion at how slavery could still exist in a post Korra world, consider this: just as government, politics and laws advance, so too does crime. As much as the justice system may try to find ways to prevent crime, crime will inevitably find a way to circumvent those laws. Even we live in a more modern world than Korra, and human trafficking still exists. I also apologize if I don't make certain things clear with my writing (like how Rai did not know she was the Avatar until she went into the Avatar State in the Prologue). I've been told (and I've come to notice this over the years) that I give away too much explanations in exposition and descriptive paragraphs. So, I'm going to try and be less revealing like that and show things more through dialogue and actions.**

 **And in case some of you get confused, this chapter takes place roughly six years after the prologue. Once again, hop on over to my deviantart to see the special doodle paired up with the chapter! :D**

 **Anyway, hope that clears some things up. Please let me know if you are confused about anything else. With regards to Rai's past and character, you'll be learning about her as the story goes on. We didn't learn crucial details about Aang and Zuko until The Storm, roughly halfway through Book 1. If I flooded every little detail in one go... what would be the point? So, you'll be learning more about Rai and her future companions as the story goes.**

* * *

The sun was setting in Republic City's Avatar Korra Park as people began heading home to their families after a hard day at work. A young boy with black spiky hair and a thick red headband strolled through the park on his way home from the market, carrying a bag of groceries with him. The park was one of the most beautiful places in the city and probably the only place to really get away from the hustle and bustle of city life. Well, that and the spirit portal. As he entered the park, he quickly spotted the iconic statue of Avatar Korra. He never got the chance to meet her, but he had heard all the stories of her amazing feats. It was almost too amazing and out of this world to believe! But the time of Avatar Korra had passed. She died many years ago and yet, her successor still hadn't been identified. Based on the order of the cycle, everyone knew that the next Avatar had to be born in the Earth Kingdom, but more than a decade went by and still there was no official announcement by the Order of the White Lotus. People had begun to think that now that there was peace between spirits and humans, there wasn't going to be another Avatar. Was the White Lotus just unable to find him or her or had the Avatar disappeared off the face of the earth like Avatar Aang had once?

The boy stood there, gazing at the statue of Avatar Korra for some time before turning to continue on his way. He stopped, however, when he heard a commotion nearby. He peered around a large bush and saw three boys older than he surrounding a hooded figure sitting against a tree with a large eel hound sleeping beside them. This wasn't an uncommon occurrence, privileged snobs assaulting homeless people in the park, but the sight of it did not sit well with him.

"Hey, look at me when I'm talking to you," the middle boy said, leaning down and snatching the small book from the homeless person's hands. The eel hound immediately perked its head up, growling intensely, but the person held their hand up, calming the protective beast. They didn't say or do anything, or even acknowledge the people bothering them. "Oh, what's this?" the boy mused as his two friends looked over his shoulder as he quickly flipped through the manual, "A firebender manual? Haven't seen one of these since I was a kid! You must be a real slow learner then!" he teased.

"Hey, why don't you show us some moves?" asked the second.

"Yeah, you're pretty good lookin' for a homeless bum!" the third added.

"Hey!" the boy shouted, unwilling to watch this go any further.

"What's the matter with you?" the middle boy asked.

The boy immediately regretted his decision as the three boys advanced on him instead. "L-look, just give the book back and leave her alone," he gulped nervously.

"Pfft, whatever, not like this book is worth much," he said, dropping it on the dirt ground.

"Hey, I recognize you!" the second boy exclaimed. "Yeah, he's that genius kid from our school!"

"Oh yeah, Takeuchi or something?" the third asked.

"Takumi," the boy corrected.

"Right, Takumi. I heard you graduated this year with honors, right? Made all the rest of us look bad! Youngest graduate in our school's history. You must think you're so smart, don't ya?" the leader asked, advancing on Takumi and pushing at him. With one final push, Takumi fell onto the ground and his groceries spilled out of the bag. "I think it's about time we teach this little genius a lesson of our own. What d'ya say guys?" the leader smirked, forming a small flame in his hands. Just as the three began laughing, the ground beneath them suddenly swallowed them up and they buried in dirt up to their shoulders with their hands pressed right against them in an uncomfortable position. Takumi stared in shock and awe before looking up and seeing the homeless girl standing behind the boys in a fighting position. She said nothing to the boy, didn't even look at him, as she reached down to pick up her book and went back to her spot beneath the tree.

"Whoa…" Takumi sighed before quickly gathering up his groceries and walking over to the girl, ignoring the calls of the three boys she had so easily defeated. "Um, hi! I-I'm Takumi. What's your name?" he asked.

The girl didn't even look up at him and he couldn't see her face with her large hood up. "Rai," she said, not taking her eyes off the book.

"That's a cool name," he complimented. "Sorry about those guys, they're jerks," he laughed, but stopped when she didn't laugh or make any response at all. "Um, here," he said, reaching into his bag and placing an apple on the ground for her.

Confused at the gesture, she finally broke her eye contact with her book and looked up at him, cocking her eyebrow as she eyed him suspiciously. Despite the hood hiding most of her face, he could see that she was young and beautiful and her pale blonde hair fell on either side of her face in long strands. The most notable feature, however, was the scar just over her left eyebrow. The awkward silence began to make him nervous and he quickly turned away and left. He looked back for a quick second just in time to see her reach for the apple and smiled to himself at that.

When Takumi arrived at his empty apartment, he quickly put his groceries away and began making himself dinner. His home was small, but it was still his home. He and his mother were far from wealthy and they lived in one of the poorer districts of Republic City. But they managed. When he was done, he sat in front of a picture of his mother and sighed.

"I, uh, went to see dad the other day. When I mentioned your name and told him who I was, I could have sworn that he recognized me, but he just acted like he didn't know me and told me to get lost. I don't understand why you kept this from me, mom! I wouldn't have thought any less of you for being with him or for accepting his money to keep quiet about me. I guess now I know how you were able to afford to send me to Republic City Academy on a waitress salary… You always told me how smart I was and how I should help people, but… how? I just don't know what to do right now…"

The next day, Takumi came back to the park again, this time with some take-out noodles from his favorite restaurant. He wasn't sure what Rai would like, so he just got two different ones and would eat whichever one she didn't pick. As he walked to the park, he couldn't help but question himself why he was going to so much trouble for this girl. He reasoned with himself that he was simply repaying her kindness for stopping those boys from assaulting him, but even he felt like there was more to it than that. There was something different about her from the other homeless people in the park. He used to pass through it everyday after school and he had never seen her there before. Her clothing was still relatively brightly colored unlike the faded and worn out tones others sported and her face looked very healthy. Then there was also the eel hound she had with her. He only got a quick glance at it, but the saddle looked like it held a sleeping bag. She looked more like a traveler than a homeless person. But still, why was she here and more importantly, why did Takumi care so much? When he arrived at the park, he found her sitting under the same tree with her eel hound, still reading that firebending beginner's manual.

"Hi!" he chirped happily, stopping right in front of her.

She looked up from her book and cocked an eyebrow in confusion. "You again?"

"Yeah, I uh, thought you might be hungry! It gets pretty chilly here this time of year and thought you might like something warm. I've got a beef noodle bowl and a chicken one. I wasn't sure which one you'd like so you can pick first!" he said, smiling as he held out both take-out bowls in his hand and extended them out to her.

She sat still for a moment as his arms began to tire before eventually reaching out and taking the beef bowl. To his joy, she began eating the noodles and slurping the soup loudly like she was savoring the taste and eager to have more. She had even shared some with her eel hound, which Takumi found rather… unhygienic, but he didn't say anything about it. He watched as she ravenously finished the bowl when he had only barely started on his. "Thanks," she muttered, quickly followed by a loud burp, "but I don't need your charity, kid."

"Charity?" he asked, confused. "I'm not doing this for charity."

"Then why else offer a homeless girl food?"

"To be nice, of course. My mom always taught me to be kind and help others. And you did save me from those jerks the other day."

"And what could you possibly have to gain by earning my favor?"

"Gain? I'm not trying to gain anything! Hasn't… hasn't anyone ever done something for you just because?" he asked.

"No," she answered.

"Oh…" Takumi looked away awkwardly, slightly put off by her answer. But something felt off about the way she said that, like there was more she wasn't telling.

"Your parents must not approve of you being so generous to a stranger. Someone could take advantage of that kindness," she said.

"Oh, my parents aren't really in the picture right now. My mom passed away a few months ago. She had this illness and the doctors said they couldn't do anything about it," he recalled sadly.

"And your father?"

"He… doesn't even want me around. Up until before my mom died, I didn't even know who he was. After she passed, I went to tell him who I was, but he just turned me away. What about you? What happened to your parents?"

"Died… a long time ago."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Takumi sat in silence as he felt Rai's eyes on him, watching his every move as he nervously played with the noodles in his bowl. "So, i-is that an eel hound?" he asked. She nodded. "Aren't they really hard to train?"

"I didn't train Haku," she answered. "He's my friend. He and I are the same." As if knowing he was being talked about, Haku lifted his head and nuzzled up to Rai's face affectionately as she gently pat her hand on his cheek.

"What do you mean?"

"You wouldn't understand," she said. Rai's eyes drifted to the statue of Avatar Korra, something Takumi quickly noticed.

"Pretty cool, right? Avatar Korra? I heard she found out she was the Avatar by herself when she was four years old! How cool is that?"

"Yeah," she replied plainly.

"Not to mention all the amazing things she did: stopping the Equalists and the Red Lotus, Harmonic Convergence, and the coolest thing of all, stopping Kuvira and the Earth Empire! Man, it must be so cool to get to be the Avatar!" he exclaimed excitedly like a giddy fanboy.

"Hardly."

"Huh?"  
"From your perspective, it seems cool, like a fantasy in reality. But they never retell all the trauma and hardships in these stories. They only highlight all the achievements, not the mistakes. Being the Avatar is an awful thing."

"Why would you say that?"

"All that responsibility? The weight of the world on your shoulders? Not everyone can handle it and not everyone wants it."

"I heard Korra loved being the Avatar," he pointed out.

"Heh, sure, Korra loved it. But that doesn't mean every other Avatar loved the job. Having people come and take you from your home and force you into this life with such responsibilities over you? Pass."

"Hm… I guess I never thought of it that way. Say, if you're an earthbender, then why were you reading a firebending manual?" he asked.

"I was interested in the fighting style and movements. A lot of people never consider adopting the fighting style of another bending art into their own." Rai suddenly stood up, followed quickly by Haku, as she began packing up her things. "Thanks for the noodles, kid."

"Y-you're leaving?" he asked in a mix of fear and sadness.

"Yeah, it's time for me to head out. I can't afford to stick around here any further," she said.

"But," he protested as she mounted Haku.

"You're a nice kid, Takumi. Don't let someone take advantage of that," she said before Haku took off and disappeared down the street in the blink of an eye. Takumi could hardly believe it. She was gone… just like that!

As Haku sped down the streets, Rai thought back to Avatar Korra. Normally, she wouldn't have come to such a big city like this one, especially when there were so many connections to the Avatar here. But she wanted to know more about Korra, without having to talk to her. And she certainly didn't want to talk to Korra. Rai knew what Korra would say if she gave the previous Avatar a chance to speak with her. Korra would urge her to accept the position she had been chosen for and Rai didn't want to give her the chance to say it. But she did want to get a sense of her predecessor's life. She patted Haku's shoulder, signaling for him to stop.

"Hang on, buddy. I've gotta use the bathroom." Haku lowered his body so Rai could climb off him as she entered a bustling restaurant. Once she finished and came out from the bathroom, she overheard a conversation taking place in a booth nearby.

"I don't know, man. Offing a kid doesn't sound like a good idea," said the first, a tone of uncertainty evident in his voice.

"What are you growing a conscience? It's the President's orders!" exclaimed a second discreetly.

"Well, technically he ain't the President yet," the first one said again.

"What does it matter? Peng says the kid's a threat to his campaign!"

"How is a kid a threat to his campaign?"

"I heard a few years back, Peng was getting some on the side. The old ball and chain had no idea! The way I hear it, he knocked up one of the girl's he was seeing and paid her to keep quiet about it. But she kicked the bucket a few months ago and now the kid's got nowhere to go. Peng doesn't want his wife to know about the affair or the kid and he definitely doesn't want news of this getting out there. Can you imagine the scandal?"

"And that's why he wants us to off this kid? What was his name again?"

"Takumi." Rai gasped when she heard that name. It couldn't possibly be the same boy, could it? Then again, she didn't know how common of a name Takumi was. And he did mention his mother recently passed AND that his father didn't want anything to do with him. The details all lined up. "The other guys are supposed to meet us there, so we better get moving."

"But my dessert isn't here yet!" the second complained.

"Fine! We'll finish your dessert and then go!"

"Where is the kid's place again?"

"One of those apartments above that fancy tailor a couple blocks down. You know, the one with the little mover character on the window?"

"Oh yeah, that one!"

When the conversation ended, Rai exited the restaurant and climbed back onto Haku. This had nothing to do with her and she didn't have any obligation to this boy. It would be easy to just keep going on her way and not look back. So… why couldn't she do it? Haku sensed something wrong and turned his head around to look at her. _'Just walk away,'_ she thought to herself, _'it's not like I owe this kind any favors.'_ But… he had shown her kindness. His offer of food may have been small, but it was a genuine and kind offer from the heart. She lied when she told him no one had ever done something for her out of the goodness of their own heart. One person had risked her own life to help her out of the goodness of her heart, and she was dead now because of it. If she had known what she was capable of then, she would have saved her. She couldn't let this kid die if she had the chance to prevent it. "Change of plans," she said with renewed and determined vigor. On her call, Haku turned around and sprinted down the street, all the while Rai kept a lookout for a tailor with a mover character on the window. This was completely unlike her. She couldn't afford to let herself get close to anyone and she didn't want to get close to anyone! She was better off with only Haku by her side. But Takumi was a good kid and if these people were trying to get rid of him just for existing, then it wasn't right for him to be the one to suffer for something that wasn't his fault.

She finally spotted a tailor store with a little mover character in the window. "That's gotta be it," she said, jumping off Haku. "If any goons show up, I need you to stay out of sight, all right?" Haku nodded and disappeared into the nearby alleyway while Rai kicked open the door leading to the upper apartments. She closed her eyes and slammed her foot on the ground, reading the seismic waves. "There you are," she said, recognizing Takumi's heartbeat. She raced up the stairs and reached the door to Takumi's apartment and knocked. Within seconds he opened it, but nearly doubled back in shock at the sight of her.

"R-Rai? What are you doing here? How do you know where I live?" he cried in shock as she pushed past him and into the apartment.

"Your life is in danger. You need to leave now," she said in a serious tone.

"Danger? What are you talking about?"

"Who is your father Takumi? I need you to tell me right now!"

"Y-you wouldn't believe me if I told you!" Takumi hesitated.

"Try me," she said, crossing her arms.

"H-he's Councilor Peng," Takumi answered, hanging his head.

"The presidential candidate," she quickly added.

"Yeah, how did you know that?"

"Have you spoken with him recently?" she asked, moving the conversation along.

"Well, I went to talk to him after my mom died, but he just told me to get lost. He didn't want anything to do with me! What does this have to do with him?" he asked as Rai moved to the window and moved the curtain outside.

"Because your father just hired some thugs to get rid of you," she said, spotting a car parking in front of the building as four men exited the vehicle and entered the building.

"What? Get rid of me? As in… kill me?" he gulped nervously. "What are you talking about?"

"I think your father doesn't want anyone to know that you exist," she said.

"Why not?"

"Because the very knowledge of you is a threat to him. Think about it, he had an affair with your mother behind his own wife's back and now he's running for President. If the news of a secret love child came out, he'd be ruined. That's why he wants to get rid of you before a scandal even happens. Grab whatever you need and fast. You need to get out of the city." Just then, there was a knock on the door and Takumi froze in fear. "Go and pack! I'll deal with this." Takumi nodded and disappeared into the bedroom. Rai quickly removed her hood and scarf and straightened up her hair before opening the door. The men on the other side immediately softened when they saw her open the door.

"Uh, 'scuse me, ma'am, but we're looking for Takumi. Is he home?" one of them asked.

"Takumi?" Rai asked, putting her index finger on her chin as she thought for a moment, or at least, made it look like that. "Oh, I'm sorry, but I think you have the wrong number. Takumi actually lives two floors up in apartment 4C," she smiled.

"Oh, sorry for the mistake. Thank you," they smiled graciously. Rai returned the smile and slowly shut the door. Once it was closed, she scoffed and rolled her eyes.

"Men are stupid," she muttered. "But that should buy us some time. Hey," she said, moving to the bedroom where Takumi was packing things into a large backpack, "you almost done?"

"Y-yeah, I'm done. Now what?" he asked. Before Rai could answer, they heard a crash from the living room as the same men from before smashed through the apartment door.

"Nice try, lady!" one of them shouted, thrusting his arm forward to blast them both with fire.

Takumi's eyes widened in fear as the flames grew closer to them, but Rai quickly stepped in front of him and dispelled the flames with a blast of air, before blowing the four men back out the door. "What the? How did? But you-" Before Takumi could even try to form a complete sentence, Rai grabbed him by the arm and pulled him towards the window. "Wait, wait, wait!" he screamed as she pulled him out the window with her. He screamed at the top of his lungs as they began to fall to the ground below, but Rai thrust her hand forward and slowed their descent with a gust of wind. "H-how did you do that? You were airbending! But you were earthbending before!" Takumi cried in shock as his breathing became uneven.

"Calm down! The last thing I need from you is to pass out! Come on!" Rai whistled and Haku appeared from the alleyway. She threw Takumi onto the saddle effortlessly before climbing up after him and taking a hold of the saddle. "Let's get out of here!" With that, Haku took off down the street with amazing speed. Takumi nearly fell off but Rai managed to grab the collar of his shirt. "Hang on or you'll fall off!" she shouted. Takumi nodded frantically and wrapped his arms around her waist.

As they neared the end of the city, Takumi turned around spotted a car fast approaching them. "Behind us!" he shouted.

Rai turned around and spotted the car as well before cursing under her breath. One of the men in the car tried blasting them with fire, but she pushed it aside with a gust of wind. Rai lowered her arm and suddenly raised it, causing a portion of the road to suddenly rise up across the entire width of the street. They heard the car screeching to a halt, shortly followed by the sound of a crash.

Haku swiftly carried them out of the city and deep into the woods, where they stopped to make camp. With a single thrust of her arm, fire came out from her palm and lit the stack of firewood she had collected. Takumi sat there with a dumbfounded look on his face while Rai sat on the other side of the fire, removing her hood. "Just come out and say it already," she said.

"Y-you're the Avatar, aren't you? I mean, that's the only reason you could earthbend, airbend and firebend, isn't it?" Rai nodded. "But, why haven't you come forward? Why not tell people that you're the Avatar?"

"What difference would it make? Balance is no longer required between the four nations and humans and spirits are living in harmony now. The Avatar isn't needed anymore."

"Of course he...she, I mean, you are!"

"For what then? The Avatar's only duty to humans was bridging them to spirits and keeping balance between the four nations. With the way the world is now, neither of those things are necessary anymore," she answered plainly.

"But what about all the bad stuff that's still happening? There's still bandits and criminals and-"

"Even if I wanted to, the Avatar can't stop crime from happening. No one can. Besides, people give too much leeway to the Avatar. They want the Avatar to solve all their problems and give them supreme authority to do it. But for every person who follows the Avatar in blind loyalty, there's another who sees the Avatar as a menace and that the world would be better off without them. Personally, I don't want the authority and I don't need to put a target on my own back."

"But, still, I don't understand why you haven't revealed yourself to everyone yet!"

"And let the White Lotus dictate what to do for the rest of my life? No thanks! I never asked to be the Avatar and I won't have anyone tell me what to do or who to be. I won't be a slave to them. Once was enough."

"Slave? What do you mean?"

"I don't want to talk about this anymore. In the morning, I'm moving on. You do what you want," she said, pulling out her bedroll from Haku's saddle and laying it on the ground.

"Where am I supposed to go? There's no way I can even set foot back in Republic City now!"

"Beats me. Your mom have any other family?"

"I think she said she had a sister that lives somewhere in the Fire Nation capital or something. So I guess I could go there," he said, staring into the fire.

"That'll be at least a month's journey on foot," Rai replied. "Tell you what, I'll take you to the capital. I'm heading that direction anyway. It'll be faster on Haku and you're less likely to be attacked by bandits with me around."

"Who'd be stupid enough to attack the Avatar?"

"And that's another thing. Don't go around telling anyone that I'm the Avatar, got it? Otherwise, I'll finish what those thugs your father hired started," she said with a serious glare.

"Yes ma'am," Takumi squeaked.

"One last thing: don't expect me to take care of you. You're hungry, you get food yourself. And if you fall behind, I'm not waiting."

"I-I understand!"

"Good. You should get some sleep. I'm leaving at sunrise."

* * *

 **Well, I you guys enjoyed this chapter. I had a lot of fun writing it XD**

 **Now, I don't really know what I should write the next chapter about (and I don't want to introduce the next companions right away), so if you guys have any ideas, I welcome suggestions!**


	3. Feeding the Soul

**Sorry for the long wait fellas, had a bit of writer's block because - and I cannot stress this enough - I'm seriously just making this up as I go along. But thanks to the help of one of my best friends in the world, Powershade117, we've generated ideas for content for the next few chapters!**

* * *

 _"_ _Hey no fair!" shouted a little boy with messy black hair. "Mom, Rai cheated! She earthbended!" the boy complained to their mother, who leaned out the window to watch as her two children played soccer together while she chopped vegetables._

 _"Nuh uh! We're playing earth soccer, so earthbending is allowed!" Rai, the little girl, slightly older than the boy, with long black hair argued as she defiantly placed her hands on her hips._

 _"But that's not fair! I'm not an earthbender! Mom!" the boy whined calling for their mother to intervene in the disagreement._

 _The woman smiled and chuckled to herself at the sight of her two children playing and arguing as she stepped out of the house. "Now, Rai, it's not fair if you use earthbending when Arata doesn't know how to yet."_

 _"He might not even be an earthbender!" Rai argued, stomping her foot on the ground, inadvertently causing a small rock pillar to emerge from the ground and shoot the ball into the air._

 _"Rai!" their mother scolded, quickly shedding her playful and kind expression and replacing it with a serious gaze. "Apologize to your little brother this instant!"_

 _Rai flinched as her mother suddenly took a serious tone and hung her head apologetically. "I'm sorry, Arata," she mumbled quietly as the ball landed back on the ground._

 _"I don't think he heard you, Rai."_

 _"Yeah, I didn't hear you!" Arata sniffled._

 _"I said I'm sorry!" Rai shouted._

 _"You shouldn't say such things, Rai. Arata could be a late bloomer for all you know. You're lucky to be able to earthbend, Rai and you shouldn't be mean to others even if they can't bend either! Besides, you're the elder Rai. Arata is your responsibility to look after and take care of when we can't."_

 _"Hey, hey, what's going on here? I thought this was an earth soccer game!" All three turned to see a bearded man enter the backyard from the house._

 _"Daddy!" Rai and Arata exclaimed, rushing to him as he effortlessly swept them both up into his arms and hugged them tightly._

 _"Welcome home, dear," their mother smiled._

 _"What happened? I thought we were playing earth soccer!" he bellowed._

 _"Rai was earthbending and I can't, so it's not fair!" Arata complained to their father while Rai simply pouted and cross her arms defiantly._

 _"Not fair, you say? Well, how about you and me form a team together?"_

 _"Yeah! Me and daddy against you, Rai!" Arata exclaimed, jumping out of their father's arms and grabbing the ball with his hands._

 _"Bring it on! I'll take you and the old timer on!" Rai boasted confidently, also jumping out of her father's arms._

 _"Old timer? I'll show you what this 'old timer' is made of!" their father exclaimed, earthbending the ball back into play and running after both his children as they ran away, gleefully laughing._

* * *

Rai's eyes snapped open as the sound of laughter faded. Dazed, she looked around and saw that she was in a small town as people walked by her, some generously depositing money into a hat at her feet. Her eyes felt wet and she gently brought her fingertips up to wipe the small tears that had begun forming. She felt something moving behind her and turned to see that it was simply the rising and falling chest of her sleeping eel hound, Haku. With hesitant and trembling fingers, she gently traced her fingers across the scar above her eye and sighed when she felt it's presence intersecting across her eyebrow. _'Only a dream…a memory,'_ she sighed in a mixture of relief and disappointment. Relief that she wasn't back in that hell she managed to escape from, but also disappointment that the dream was only a dream. It wasn't the first time she had ever dreamt of what her life used to be like, but it was the first time in years since she had.

"Hey." Rai looked up and saw Takumi standing across from her, holding two large steam buns in either of his hands. "You ok?" he asked in concern as he took a seat next to her and held out his hand to offer her the bun.

"I'm fine," she replied plainly, taking the bun.

"You look like you really zoned out there," Takumi said, taking a bite of the bun.

"I said I'm fine," she replied firmly.

"Ok… ok," Takumi held up his hand in an effort to calm her aggression. It apparently worked since she returned her focus to the steam bun in her hands. "So, is this what you do all day? Just sit here and do nothing?" Takumi asked. They were sitting in the town square of a village called Su Yung, the first village they had arrived at after leaving Republic City. It was a rather prosperous farming community filled with more animal-drawn carriages and carts rather than automobiles like in the city, though one of two cars wasn't an odd sight.

"Pretty much," she replied, finishing the bun and opening the firebending manual once again.

"But, doesn't that feel a bit, unfulfilling?" he asked, taking another bite of his bun.

"Unfulfilling or not, it's a quiet, peaceful life where only I decide what I do, and it's all mine."

"But you have all this power and potential! Even if you don't want to be the... you know what," he whispered, "don't you want to do something more fulfilling? Like your life has a purpose?" he asked.

"Everyone's life has a purpose, small or big picture," Rai spoke, putting down her book and locking eyes with Takumi, "Is one person more important than another simply because their life is more meaningful than someone else's? Look at that merchant over there," she said, gesturing to the man selling fruits in the town square. "Can you truly say that his life has no purpose or meaning simply because he does the same thing every day, because he doesn't have the potential that I or someone else does? Purpose and meaning in life is all subjective. Our lives only have purpose and meaning because we exist and choose to give it meaning. I won't let someone tell me what my purpose in life is. I have no plans on becoming 'you know what' but I don't believe that means my life has any less meaning than it would if I did become 'you know what'. My life is mine; that's all I want."

"Doesn't it get… boring?" Takumi asked, finishing his bun and wiping his mouth clean.

"Perhaps, but it's peaceful, quiet and my own." As Rai finished her sentence, a passerby dropped a few coins into the hat placed in front of Rai's feet.

"I thought you didn't want charity," Takumi snickered.

Rai chuckled under her breath at Takumi's remark, "Well, if I want to eat, I can't afford to be picky. I obviously don't have a job or family savings like you, which will only last you so long. So my options are either this or taking a job from the job board over there," she said, gesturing to a wooden board with several sheets of paper posted on it.

"Job boards?" Takumi asked.

"They're not as common in the bigger cities. If someone needs a job done but can't do it themselves, they'll make a post with what they need done and how much they're willing to pay for it. It`s a quick and easy way to earn some money. I've done a few of them every now and then to keep food on the table for me and Haku. Go take a look if you're interested," she explained.

Takumi glanced over to the job board and, curious, got up from his spot on the ground and made his way over. As he examined the postings, a few people older than him were browsing as well, some even taking the posts off the wall. He scanned some of the posts and most of them involved regular household chores, making deliveries or helping with harvesting crops. Eventually, one post caught his eye. "Hm, help needed for harvesting, and it's dated yesterday." His interest peaked, Takumi reached for the post and pulled the paper off the board before making his way back to Rai.

"What's that one?" she asked, not even looking up from her book.

"Some farmer needs help harvesting their orchard," he replied.

"Heh, well, good luck with that," she said disinterested, turning the page in her book.

"You mean, you're not going to help me?" he asked.

"Nope. You want the job, you do it yourself. I believe I made myself clear that I won't be taking care of you," she said in a serious tone. "I'm just escorting you to your family."

"Ok, I can do this by myself! I'll show you I can!" Takumi exclaimed, determined. He reached down for his bag and with the job post in hand, made his way towards the address specified on the sheet. Rai watched with her usual disinterested frown as he disappeared down the street and out of view.

Once he was out of sight, she closed her eyes and smirked, "Heh." Haku, who slept behind her between her and the wall, perked his head up at the sound of her chuckle. Noticing him suddenly focus on her with concern, she gently rubbed his snout. "It's nothing, he just reminds me of someone, that's all."

When Takumi arrived on the farm, he examined the large wooden house with a fenced yard that sat on front of a large field of fruit trees. He knocked on the door, but there was no answer. "Hello? Hello?" he called out. Still there was no answer. So, he made his way around the back of the house and into the orchard, hoping to find the owner. "Um, hello? Is anyone here?" All of a sudden, his legs were swept out from underneath him and he landed roughly on his back. "Ow…" he groaned.

When he tried to get up, someone put their foot on his chest and pinned him to the ground as a dark brown and white dog suddenly appeared and growled over him. Takumi stiffened when a pitchfork was suddenly placed right in front of his face as the young girl over him glared at him angrily. "How many times have I told you punks to stay off my property? I told you I ain't giving you 'protection money'!"

"I-I don't know what you're talking about! I'm just here about the job post!" Takumi cried, quickly holding up the paper.

The girl looked at the flyer, recognizing it as hers and quickly stood up off Takumi. "Oh, sorry about that. Back off, Mimi," she said to the dog, who became docile while she offered her hand to Takumi and helped him up. "Sorry about that. I'm Meilin. My dad hurt his leg recently so I'm running this farm all by myself until he gets better."

"I'm Takumi. It's nice to meet you," he said with a smile. "So, who exactly did you think I was?"

"There's this gang of teenage punks in town that goes around collecting 'protection money' from the other local farms and businesses, but it's really just extortion. They trash any place that doesn't pay, but I won't be intimidated! But I don't want to bother you with my other problems. You're here about my job posting right?" He nodded. "Good, what I need you to do is take this step ladder and harvest all these apple trees right here. Fill up as many buckets as you can and then I'll need you to help me load them up on a cart and take them to the town square market. And if you do a good job, I might let you take some apples for yourself!"

"Ok, I'll get started!" With that, Takumi got to work helping Meilin harvest the apples of her orchard. A couple times, an apple fell from its branch and landed directly on his head. Meilin giggled at this and remarked that it had happened to her a lot the first time as well. Takumi wasn't sure if she was being serious or just saying that to make him feel better. Back and forth he went, carrying baskets filled with apples from out of the orchard to the cart at the side of the house as Mimi playfully ran alongside him. Hours passed into the afternoon as Takumi plopped onto the ground, panting in exhaustion.

"Hey, not bad. You harvested a lot more than I expected! You've got a lot of energy for such a little guy!" she laughed, playfully nudging his arm. "Come on, let's load up some of these baskets and take them down to the market. After that, I'll give you your payment."

"Ok," he said before pushing himself onto his feet and helping her load up her wooden cart while she strapped in a fox deer to the front.

"Mimi, stay here and look after dad!" Meilin called. Mimi barked and sat on the porch, obediently standing watch while Meilin patted the seat next to her, signaling for Takumi to climb on. Meilin shook the reins, causing the fox deer to begin trotting forward along the dirt road. "So, where are you from, Takumi?" she asked, making light conversation as they rode.

"Oh, I'm from Republic City," he answered.

"Really? I've never been to the big city before. What's it like?" she asked with wide, excited eyes.

"It's nothing like this town. There's lots of tall buildings so you don't get to see the stars as much. And there's so many people. It gets crowded and loud fast."

"So, why aren't you there now?"

"Well, my mom actually passed away recently so I'm going to live with some relatives."

"Oh, oh I'm so sorry," Meilin whispered, the earlier excitement was suddenly replaced with a look of sadness and concern. "I… I know what it's like. My mom died when I was little and since then it's just been me and dad and he's super protective. But every now and then, I still think of her and how much I miss her."

"Yeah, me too," Takumi sighed happily as he thought of his own mother, the memories warming his heart bit by bit.

"But wait, are you travelling all by yourself?" she asked. "It can get pretty dangerous outside the big city for a little guy like you."

"No, no, I've got a, uh, friend coming with me. She's a really strong fighter and we haven't run into trouble so far."

They rode back into town and Takumi helped Meilin unload baskets to various restaurants and produce stores. When they reached the last drop off in the town square, Takumi spotted Rai still sitting in the same spot he had left her in.

"So, how was the job?" Rai asked as Takumi made his way over to her.

"Have you just been sitting here all day since I left?" he asked.

"Yup," she replied simply.

"Did you even do… anything? I just can't understand how someone with so much skill and potential as you could just sit here and do nothing, just wasting your life!" he exclaimed.

Rai's eyes shot up at Takumi as she firmly shut her book and stood up, towering over his small form. "If you're not happy traveling with me, then you're more than welcome to find a new traveling companion," she said sternly.

Takumi sighed. "I-I don't mean to nag. It's just… my mom missed out on a lot because she had to spend all her time and money raising me and then she passed away so young. Life is short, Rai, and anything can happen. I… I just don't want you to feel like you've missed out."

Before Rai could respond, Takumi's attention was diverted by the sound of a dog barking. He turned around and quickly recognized Meilin's dog, Mimi, running into the town square barking loudly. "Mimi! What is it?" The dog continued barking wildly, jumping around and pointing back in the direction of Meilin's farm with her nose. Without hesitation, Meilin climbed back onto her now empty cart and rode off back to her farm after Mimi.

"Something's wrong…" Takumi noted. He turned back to Rai, who continued to look uninterested. "You're not coming, are you?"

"What do you think?" she retorted. Takumi said nothing. Instead he gave her a disappointed frown as he ran after Meilin's cart back to her farm.

Rai sat back down and pulled out a different book, a novel, and continued reading, all while trying to ignore the voice in her head yelling at her to go after Takumi. "He has to be able to take care of himself. It's not my job to take care of him all the time!" she reasoned with herself outloud.

Haku turned his neck around to look at her, his expression almost saying, "But if you don't do anything, he could get hurt. You can protect him."

"I shouldn't have to. He got himself into this mess; it's not my job to bail him out," she said to her faithful eel hound.

Haku cocked his eyebrow in response and groaned at her, as if to say, "But you had no problem intervening before. You saved his life then. If you hadn't come along then, he'd be dead now."

"Ugh," she groaned, "you're giving me the same look mom and dad used to give me. They always said that it was my responsibility to look after Arata because I was the older sister; it was my job to protect him because I was a bender and he wasn't. Even with all these stupid powers, I couldn't even protect Kala. Fat lot of good that did for either of them." Rai hung her head in self-loathing and disappointment, which Haku picked up on.

In response, Haku gently nuzzled against her arm affectionately. She brought her hand under his chin and scratched his scaly skin. Haku moaned again, which Rai took as his way of saying, "You may not have been able to protect Arata or Kala, but you can protect Takumi. He needs you; and you need him."

"I really hate it when you're right," she muttered.

* * *

At the farm, Takumi arrived just in time to see Meilin being roughly thrown to the ground next to her weary father by an older, muscular boy. Mimi barked angrily at the boy and bit his leg. The boy cried out in pain and tried to shake Mimi off, but her jaw remained clamped tightly on his leg. However, one of the boy's several friends came over and kicked Mimi in her side. Mimi whimpered out loud and released her hold on the main boy's leg.

"Hey!" Takumi shouted, quickly earning the attention of the five assailants. "Leave them alone!" The boys snickered to each other as the one who threw Meilin down advanced to Takumi.

"Takumi?" Meilin cried in shock at seeing him.

"And what are you gonna do about it?" he grinned.

Takumi gulped in fear, but tried to maintain his composure. He widened his stance and raised his chest, trying to appear strong and confident. Out of instinct, he quickly raised his fist and punch the older boy in the face, however, Takumi quickly drew back his hand and hissed in pain as his punch barely phazed the attacker. Instead, he simply laughed at Takumi's pathetic attempt and quickly punched him on the side of his head. The force of the blow quickly sent Takumi to the ground, but the boy simply lifted him up and punched him on the other side, splitting open his lip in the process. He laughed as Takumi squirmed in pain on the ground before swiftly kicking him in the stomach. Takumi cried out in pain and quickly curled his body into a ball in response.

"Heh heh," the boy laughed confidently. "This is who comes to your rescue? A little boy? I told you you'd regret not paying us that protection money. If you had, we might have been able to prevent your sad little farm from burning to the ground. Torch the place," he commanded as two members of his group stepped forward, hands lit with flames.

"No!" Meilin protested, running up to stop them only to be pushed back to the ground watched helplessly and couldn't stop them as they both thrust their arms forward to set her home on fire. Before the flames could reach the house, a sudden and powerful gust of wind blew the flames two firebenders looked at each other confused, before trying again, only for the same thing to happen.

"What's taking so long?" the leader cried.

"Something's up with the wind…" one of them remarked. As they both tried to light the house on fire for a third time, the wind suddenly lifted both firebenders up into the air as they fell into a large pile of manure. Meilin and Takumi couldn't help but let out a small chuckle at the sight of the two firebenders reeling in disgust as they emerged covered in manure.

"Who did that? Who's there!" the leader shouted. "Come out!" He quickly turned around when he heard a twig snap and saw a girl in green and black with blonde hair walking towards them on the trail that led to the town square. "You've got a lot of nerve lady."

However, instead of focusing on him, Rai ignored his threats and focused her attention on Takumi, who held his stomach and groaned in pain. She carefully helped him sit up and examined the bruise on the side of his head and his split lip. "You came…" Takumi coughed, managing to crack a smile despite his bloody lip and bruised face.

"You really need to stop putting yourself in dangerous situations, Takumi. I won't always be here to look out for you," she said, cracking a slight smirk. She ruffled Takumi's hair - something that surprised him - as she stood up and prepared to face the five attackers. "If there's one thing I can't stand, it's bullies trying to force people to do what they want. I suggest you all leave before you regret it," she said sternly, cracking her knuckles.

"Before we regret it? I think we better teach you a lesson," the leader laughed.

"Heh," Rai chuckled confidently, "I've dealt with men trying to teach me a lesson before. My greatest regret is that I only managed to kill one of them."

The two men she had blown into the manure flinched at the sudden and intense glare she gave them. "Uh, sh-she looks pretty serious, man," one of them said.

"So what? There's five of us and only one of her! Now get her!" he ordered. Two advanced, but Rai easily blew them into the air, where they landed roughly behind her. The next to advanced, but Rai blew one of them back with a gust of wind before engaging the fourth. She blocked his attacks with her arms before grabbing his arm as he tried to punch her and flipping him over her shoulder and roughly onto his back. She delivered a swift kick to the side of his head, knocking him out cold. She turned her attention to the one she had knocked back before and this time, pulled him towards her with a gust of wind and knocked him out with a clothesline move. She turned back to the leader, who stood there in shock and awe that she had taken out his entire group.

"You are nothing but a bully who preys on the weak to exploit them," she said, waking up to him with a vicious glare while he simply stood there in a mixture of shock and fear. She quickly seized him by the collar of his shirt and pulled him close and she whispered, "I suggest you put some distance between yourself and this village, now." When she finished her threat, she single handedly threw him over her shoulder and to the ground. Like a frightened cat, the boy scrambled to his feet and skittered away as his beaten and weak crew followed after him while groaning in pain.

"My goodness, that was incredible! You defeated them all by yourself!" Meilin's father exclaimed as Meilin helped him up.

"It was nothing," Rai remarked, casually brushing dirt off her shoulders.

"Are you kidding? That was amazing! I don't know what would have happened if you didn't come along!" Meilin exclaimed. "Is this that friend you were telling me about, Takumi?"

"Yeah," Takumi nodded before turning to Rai. "Nothing for you perhaps. Ow," he groaned in pain, rubbing his lip. "Are you two okay?"

Before Meilin and her father could respond, Rai moved up to him and spoke. "You should worry more about yourself." She took Takumi's face in her hands, examining the bruise on his face and the bloody cut on his lip. "You'll be fine," she replied casually.

"That was so brave of you, Takumi, coming to defend us like that," Meilin smiled, causing Takumi to blush.

"There must be something we can do to thank you!" Meiling father exclaimed.

"Oh, I know! You must take some of our apples!" Meilin exclaimed, quickly gathering a small satchel of apples and handing them to Takumi.

"Well, that is kind of you, but it's really not necessary. I'm just glad we could help," Takumi smiled.

"Please! I insist! We have more apples than we can count! You'd be doing us a favour!" Meilin insisted, not taking "no" for an answer.

"Just take the apples," Rai muttered to Takumi before turning to leave on Haku.

Takumi paused for a second, surprised at how detached Rai seemed to be. However, he turned back to Meilin and smiled as he took the satchel of apples she held out for him.

"Oh and here's the money for the job," Meilin added, handing Takumi some paper bills. Before Takumi turned away to leave with Rai, Meilin quickly planted a kiss on his cheek.

Takumi blushed intensely as his hand went up to where Meilin had pecked him. He smiled and laughed nervously, "T-thanks. To both of you. Well, I gotta catch up with my friend before she leaves without me," he chuckled, "You two take care now!" Takumi ran to catch up with Rai and Haku. The large lizard was taking a leisurely pace at the moment, so Takumi was able to comfortably keep up with them on foot. Not many words were spoken for a time, until Takumi turned to Rai. "So...How did it feel?" he asked.

"How did what feel?" she asked back, keeping her eyes locked on the path ahead.

"Oh, don't give me that," he chuckled, amused that she was pretending to not know what he was asking about. "Those people back there. You saved them. Did you see how happy they were? Don't tell me you didn't notice."

"I was too busy watching you almost get yourself killed," she responded, completely deflecting his question once again.

"And you came to my rescue. I thought you said that you weren't going to take care of me?"

Rai scoffed. "Well, don't get used to it."

"Okay...I see you're not taking a hint," he sighed before asking his question once again. "How did it feel to help those people?"

Haku came to a stop and turned his neck to look at Rai, curious about her answer as well. Takumi stopped as well, as both looked at Rai, eager to hear her answer. "I... I feel…" she struggled to find the words, "I feel a... warmness inside me…" _'Was this how Kala felt? Putting herself at risk to help me?'_ she thought to herself before speaking again. "I don't want to talk about this anymore," she said as Haku resumed his leisurely pace.

"I can respect that," he smiled, satisfied with her answer as he continued walking alongside the eel hound. "Just...please try to remember that feeling. Eating is good for the body, but feeding another is good for the soul. That's what my mom used to say."

Rai smiled, "Hm, your mother sounds like a smart woman. The more you talk about her, it…"

"What?" he asked, hearing her trail off in her speech.

"Nevermind," she muttered.

"You were about to say something. What was it?" he asked, gently pressing her.

"I said I DON'T want to talk about it!" Rai suddenly yelled. Haku started to jog, forcing Takumi to do the same just to keep pace as they leave the town of Su Yung.

* * *

 **Next chapter: Rai and Takumi visit an ostrich horse ranch owned by a greedy man who won ownership of it from the original owner. Though Rai insists on staying out of it, Takumi gets too ahead of himself when he makes a bet with the owner.**

 **So, as I stated at the beginning of this chapter, I'm making this story up as I go along. Not a good practice, I know, but it was either that or nothing. So, again I stress, ideas are more than welcome! Hope you're all enjoying the story so far!**


	4. The Race

**God, I'm so sleepy right now... I just need a sleep in day!**

* * *

"Ow, my butt is killing me," Takumi groaned, sliding off Haku's saddle and rubbing his sore rear.

"Well, this saddle is only made to carry one," Rai remarked, sliding off after him as Haku leisurely drank from a trough of water positioned outside the inn in the town they had stopped at.

"Wow, a ranch. Who knows, maybe I can find my own ride here!" Takumi cried in excitement, running up to the wooden fence that surrounded the ranch and racetrack. "Oh, cool! Ostrich horses! You don't see a lot of those nowadays in Republic City. I never really liked the idea of driving a car. There's just something cooler about animals than cars."

"Well, cars are considered to be more advanced. And while some argue that you don't have to feed a car like you would an animal, a car requires regular maintenance. Cars break down and cars don't have your back the way a partner does," Rai smiled at Haku, affectionately scratching his chin while he purred in pleasure. "If you've still got enough money left, you can probably buy something."

"Where did you get Haku?" Takumi asked.

"I didn't get him anywhere. We just… found each other. I don't know where he came from, but when I looked into his eyes, I could see that we were the same. We understood each other."

"Wow, that's so cool!" Takumi said in awe.

Rai chuckled and briefly cracked a smile at Takumi's child-like wonder. "Well, go on and take a look," she said, gesturing to the ranch entrance. Takumi ran off towards the ranch entrance like an eager child rushing to a candy store. As he strolled alongside each enclosure within the stables, he carefully examined the ostrich horses within until he noticed the one at the end, who's plaque bore no name. "Hm, how come you don't have a name, little guy?" He inched closer to the gate that kept the ostrich horse inside, only for it to angrily screech and snap at him. He jumped back in fright before calming himself and slowly approaching the gate once again. He reached into his bag and pulled out a kiwi fruit and knife and began peeling it before holding the peeled fruit out to the ostrich horse. It cautious sniffed the fruit before quickly snatching it from Takumi's hand. Apparently satisfied with the treat, the ostrich horse suddenly became docile and affectionately nuzzled against Takumi's hand.

"Well, aren't you a regular animal whisperer," Rai said, coming into the stables and joining him.

"Took the words right out of my mouth!" Rai and Takumi looked to their left as an middle-aged, bearded man with glasses joined them. "The name's Chang and welcome to my- I mean, Mr. Pian's ranch," he said with waning enthusiasm.

"Your ranch?" Rai asked.

"Well, it used to be my ranch, but it belongs to Mr. Pian now. He was kind enough to let me stay and work here," Chang replied. "But that's real impressive, kid. Never seen her take such a liking to anyone before!"

"Really? What's her name?" Takumi asked.

"You know, all this time I've had her, I haven't come up with one. Plus Mr. Pian keeps me busy with work so I just don't have the time."

"Hm… How about, Kiwi? Since she seems to like kiwis a lot," Takumi suggested, gently stroking the ostrich horse's beak. The ostrich horse cawed in response cooed affectionately as she rubbed her beak against Takumi's hand.

"Haha, I think she likes it! Would you two like to ride some of our ostrich horses?" Chang asked.

"I'll pass," Rai replied.

"I won't! I'd love to!" Takumi exclaimed, quickly moving to the gate latch that kept Kiwi enclosed inside.

"Oh, I'm afraid I can't let you ride her, though," Chang said. "She's technically Mr. Pian's and I'd get in a lot of trouble if I let someone else ride her. Come on, I've got another ostrich horse I can let you ride." Chang moved to one of the other stabled ostrich horses as Takumi sadly turned away from Kiwi, who appeared just as upset at his departure. They followed Chang through the stables and out into the field inside a race track where Rai casually sat on the fence to watch. As Chang began explaining what to do to Takumi, another man was bringing a very rebellious and angry ostrich horse out onto the field as well. He pulled and tugged at the reins, yelling at the bird to obey him, but it only reared its head and cawed loudly in defiance. It shook itself free from the man's grip and quickly ran straight for Takumi. "Look out!" Chang called.

Takumi turned around just in time to be pushed to the ground by the oncoming ostrich horse. He groaned as he landed roughly on his back while the ostrich horse sniffed and poked him with its beak, as if searching for something in his pockets. "Kiwi?" Takumi exclaimed, recognizing the ostrich horse from before.

"Well, she's certainly taken a liking to you!" Chang laughed as he helped Takumi up.

"Chang! What is the meaning of this!" the man who Kiwi ran from yelled, angrily stomping over to the pair.

"I-I'm so sorry Mr. Pian. It won't happen again, I promise!" Chang cried, practically pleading for his job. "I was just giving the young man a test ride on one of our ostrich horses."

"My ostrich horses," Pian corrected, "And how many times have I told you that we don't do that sort of thing anymore. We do races now."

"But the kids always loved-"

"I don't care what the kids love; I care about what makes the most money and that's races! Now get back to work!" Pian yelled, storming off.

Chang sighed, "I'm very sorry about that. I didn't think he would be back so soon. I'm afraid I can't let you ride any of our… his ostrich horses."

"How exactly did he come to own the business?" Takumi asked.

"Well, it's rather embarrassing…"

"What happened?" Takumi pressed on.

"I… I had too much to drink one night and got far too into a card game than I'd have liked. I promised my wife and children that I'd keep my gambling problem under control, but in the morning, I realized that I had lost the entire ranch and inn in the game!" Chang wailed, suddenly breaking down into tears. "She packed up her things and took the kids and left me!"

Takumi stood there awkwardly, speechless and concerned at the sudden turn the conversation had taken. "Uh, there there," he patted Chang on the back, trying to defuse the situation.

"Thank you," he sniffled, wiping his tears and regaining his composure. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have gotten so upset like that. I'm sorry I can't let you ride any of our ostrich horses, but I can offer you a room at our inn. I will have to charge you though. Mr. Pian doesn't allow me to give out complimentary rooms."

"Thank you and that's ok. It'll be nice to sleep in a bed again."

Chang showed the pair to a vacant room, which to Takumi's surprise only had one bed. "You can take the bed," Rai said, dropping her things next to the couch by the window.

"A-are you sure?" Takumi asked.

"It's fine. I haven't been able to fall asleep in a bed in years anyway," she replied, laying onto the couch and putting her hands behind her head. Takumi was still ready to offer her the bed, but he knew she would probably just yell at him. If she was just more comfortable on a couch, then that was it. Takumi fell asleep quickly as the sun set and night descended across the small village.

Rai, however, found herself unable to get to sleep. "Dammit," she cursed under her breath. This wasn't a common occurrence. Ever since they took her from her home and she escaped, she had become a very light sleeper. She could never get comfortable sleeping in a bed again - always being on alert for a surprise attack - and had instead gotten accustomed to sleeping in corners and doorways. She pushed the blanket off her body as she sat up on the couch and sighed. She looked over at Takumi, who was peacefully sound asleep in the bed. She smiled to herself and couldn't help but feel a bit of jealousy. How she longed to be able to get a good night's sleep in a bed again…

As quietly as she could to avoid waking Takumi, Rai crept out of the room and exited the inn for a midnight stroll. As she neared the ranch, she noticed a small light coming from inside the ranch. She carefully crept closer to the ranch and saw the light coming from inside the private office. She quietly stood outside the window and peeked inside to see Pian reading a letter as he paced back and forth. At first, she didn't think much, until she noticed the emblem stamped on the back of the letter, a sword circled with a shackle and chain. She stepped back and gasped in shock at the sight of the emblem, which Pian unfortunately heard.

"Who's out there?" he shouted, rushing to the window and looking outside, but Rai had already disappeared around the corner of the building.

"I know that emblem," she muttered to herself, slowly returning to the room she shared with Takumi. "That's the slavers' emblem. What does Pian have to do with them?" she wondered out loud.

"Rai… are you up?" Takumi groaned sleepily, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. Rai quickly lay back down on the couch and closed her eyes, pretending that she was fast asleep. Takumi saw this and lay back down. "Must have been my imagination."

* * *

In the morning, Takumi was strolling around the ranch again, this time watching as Mr. Pian once again failed to mount the very unruly Kiwi. He stomped the ground angrily, cursing under his breath before reaching for his riding crop and raising it to strike the ostrich horse.

"Hey, stop!" Takumi shouted upon seeing this as he jumped over the fence and ran towards Pian and Kiwi, who quickly ran towards and took shelter behind him in an effort to hide from Pian.

"What do you think you're doing?" Pian shouted.

"What do you think you're doing?" Takumi shouted back. "You can't just go around beating her because she won't listen to you! That's no way to treat an animal!"

"I'll treat them however I want. They are my property!"

"Property that you cheated to get!"

"Excuse me?"

"I know you got took advantage of Mr. Chang and-"

"Don't you dare march onto my property and begin talking like you think you know everything! Chang's always had a gambling problem and he just got too confident at the table. Just because his family left him and he's sorry doesn't mean I'm just going to give it back to him!" Pian reached for Kiwi's reins, but she quickly snapped her beak at him while still standing behind Takumi.

"I don't think she wants to go with you," he said in a serious tone.

"She doesn't have a choice!"

"Wait!" Takumi cried, holding his arms out to separate Pian from Kiwi. "You're a betting man, right? How about we make a bet?" Any other day, Takumi would be asking himself if he knew what he was saying, but something deep within him just drove his actions.

"Bet? What kind of bet?"

"Um, you and I have a race. The winner gets Kiwi."

"Ha! I already own the ostrich horse, why on earth would I bet her?" Pian howled in laughter. "And for that matter, why would I even agree to this?"

"Because… because you know you're going to win," Takumi answered confidently. "I have zero experience riding an ostrich horse."

Pian stood there silently considering the idea as he stroked his chin with his fingers. "All right kid, you've peaked my interest. Here's the wager: two laps around the track. You win, you get to keep the ostrich horse. But if I win, you have to work for me for a whole month," Pian smirked with confidence, as if he knew that there was no way he could lose.

Takumi glanced over at Rai, who finally emerged from the inn and once again seemed uninterested in the trouble he kept getting himself into. He felt Kiwi affectionately nudge his arm and lift it over her neck so his arm was around her. "You got a deal!" he exclaimed in determination, eagerly shaking the ranch owner's extended hand. Takumi and the ranch owner prepared their respective ostrich horses for the race as Rai approached Takumi.

"What do you think you're doing?" she asked, crossing her arms.

"Relax, it's not like I'll get myself killed in a race," he said, climbing up onto Kiwi.

Rai sighed, "No, but if you lose, you'll be stuck here for a month and I'm not going to sit around and wait for you. You seem to have an awful habit of putting yourself in risky situations all because you're too cocky. You don't have to be everyone's hero, Takumi. I hope you know what you're doing." With that, she returned to the sidelines and leaned against one of the posts used to tie the reins of the ostrich horses to. Haku came up next to her and lay down to casually observe the race. Chang walked up to the edge of the racetrack and raised his arm.

"On your marks, get set… GO!" he shouted, swiftly bringing down his hand as the two ostrich horses and their riders dashed off. Pian took the lead quickly with Takumi following closely behind. Takumi tried to come up beside Pian and overtake him for the lead, but Pian saw this from the corner of his eye and quickly moved his ostrich horse to block Takumi's advance. Takumi growled under his breath and tried to come around him on the other side, but Pian simply repeated his motion. No matter which side he was coming from, Pian blocked him every time. Takumi tried once again to come around him on the other side, but as soon as Pian moved in front of him, Takumi quickly moved Kiwi to the inside of the track and came right up on Pian's right.

"You tricked me!" he shouted angrily, to which Takumi smirked. Pian glared at Takumi and quickly lead his ostrich horse to ram Kiwi into the fence that lined the inside of the race track.

"Ah!" Takumi cried as Kiwi lost her balance and slowed down to regain it. "Come on girl, you can do it!" he cried, urging Kiwi to continue as they began their second lap. However, Kiwi's momentary stop gave Pian a huge lead.

"Oh, it doesn't look like he'll be able to catch up," Chang commented sadly.

Rai focused back on the race, noticing the large gap between Pian and Takumi, who struggled to catch up. As Pian rounded the corner to the finish line, Rai slowly and subtly moved her foot, kicking her heel into the ground. Unbeknownst to all the spectators, a faint shock wave moved through the earth towards the race track and Pian's ostrich horse. Just as Pian's ostrich horse stepped on the ground with its clawed foot, the earth beneath it suddenly shifted, causing the ostrich horse to lose its balance and fall to the ground. Pian was thrown off the saddle and rolled roughly onto the ground, giving Takumi and Kiwi the chance to catch up.

"Come on, girl! We can win this!" Takumi shouted in encouragement as they rounded the corner, flew by the fallen Pian and his ostrich horse and crossed the finish line. The crowd jumped up and cheered loudly as Takumi climbed off Kiwi, who nuzzled him affectionately. "We did it! We won! Did you see that?" he cried with a wide smile to Rai.

"Yeah, real lucky," Rai replied.

"Grr, it wasn't luck! You cheated!" Pian shouted, coming over to Takumi.

"Cheated? I didn't cheat!" Takumi argued.

"Yes, you did, you earthbended at my ostrich horse and made him trip! I know it!"

"I didn't see anything and how could I have done that when I'm not even a bender?"

"Well, then your friend must have done it! She's an earthbender, isn't she?" Pian accused, getting more into Takumi's face while pointing at Rai.

"I suggest you take a step back, Pian, before you do something you regret," Rai said, stepping forward and putting her hand on his shoulder, forcing the man to step back from Takumi. "And for the record," she began, holding out her palm as a ball of fire suddenly formed within it, "I'm a firebender. Maybe you're just not as good of a racer as you thought."

"Maybe you'd like to put your money where your mouth is!" Pian growled angrily.

"You want to race me now?" Rai asked, cocking one eyebrow. "I'd take a moment to think about this. I believe we all witnessed how well you raced just now."

"You and your lizard dog against me, right here, right now. I win, I get that ostrich horse back!"

Rai closed her eyes and smirked confidently, before opening her eyes and moving in front of Pian. "All right, but if I win, you have to give ownership of the entire ranch and inn back to Mr. Chang," Rai said. "Do we have a deal?"

Pian thought about it only for a second as he shook her hand firmly, pride overruling rationality. "Deal!" Pian mounted his ostrich horse and waited at the start line while Rai climbed onto Haku, who walked up next to the ostrich horse. Chang counted down again and at his call, Pian and his ostrich horse sped off while Haku simply remained in place.

"Um, I said 'go'," Chang spoke up, confused as to why she had not yet moved.

"Oh, I know," Rai replied nonchalantly. Haku still did not move. Rai watched Pian circle around the halfway point of the track before turning back to Haku. "Ok, now!" At her call, Haku sped forward at a blinding speed, circling around the entire track and easily passing Pian just as they rounded the final turn before crossing the finish line.

"No, no, no!" Pian ranted, jumping off his ostrich horse. "There's no way your little lizard dog could have beaten me! You must have cheated too!"

"Haku isn't a lizard dog," Rai said, climbing off her speedy companion, "He's an eel hound. You know? The fastest animal on land and sea?" Pian was speechless as Rai strolled up to him. "Now, I do believe you have your end of the wager to uphold." Pian gulped as he quickly turned around and mounted his ostrich horse to make a run for it. Haku instantly raced up to cut Pian off and lifted the running coward off the ostrich horse with his mouth. Pian squealed in fright as Haku held him over the ground before roughly dropping him and pinning him to the ground with one of his feet. "Haku doesn't like it when someone tries to go back on their word. You have something that belongs to Mr. Chang," Rai said, squatting down to Pian's level.

* * *

"I don't know how I can thank the both of you. Because of you, I have my ranch and inn back!" Chang smiled widely. "I've already sent a letter to my wife at her sister's. Hopefully, she'll take me back."

"Just be sure to take it easy with the drinks and gambling from now on," Rai cautioned.

Chang chuckled. "I will. You can be sure of that."

"I suppose since you own the ranch again, you should probably have Kiwi back," Takumi said, trying to hide the sadness in his voice and the reluctance in his action as he handed the reins back to Chang.

"Well, you did win that race fair and square and she seems quite taken with you. It would break my heart to make her stay here when she so obviously wants to go with you," he smiled, handing the reins back to Takumi as Kiwi nuzzled him affectionately.

"R-really?" Takumi's eyes went wide in excitement. "Thank you so much!"

"It is I who should be thanking you. If you ever find yourselves in the area again, the two of you are always welcome at my ranch and inn," Chang smiled.

As Rai began packing her things on Haku's saddle, Takumi approached her. "So, during my race…"

"What about it?" Rai asked, not even turning around as he spoke.

"Pian's ostrich horse just happened to trip on the completely flat, dirt path?"

"Seems like it," she casually replied.

Takumi chuckled. "And he swore he saw the earth move?"

"Probably a stress-induced hallucination," she replied. She would never admit it, but he knew. "At least one good thing came out of this."

"And what's that?" he asked.

"Haku won't have to carry you around anymore," she said, climbing onto Haku's saddle. "Besides, I certainly wasn't going to wait around for a whole month if you lost. Let's see if your ostrich horse can keep up!" For a split second, he saw her crack a smile as Haku dashed off down the road.

"H-hey, wait up!" Takumi cried, quickly climbing onto Kiwi, who's saddle was now loaded with his belongings, and shook her reins to follow after the speedy eel hound.

* * *

 **I must give many a thank yous to my good friend Powershade117 for helping me come up with some of the ideas in this and future chapters!**

 **Next chapter: When Rai backtracks to interrogate Pian over his connection to slavers, Takumi wanders into the wrong place at the wrong time...**


	5. The Sword and Chain

**Wow, sorry for the long wait but I've been super in playing video games. Between Digimon Cyber Sleuth and my Legend of Zelda binge, I've been preeeetty busy X3.**

* * *

Rai and Takumi were taking a leisurely stroll through the thick woods as the sun began setting. Rather than both being on Haku as they had been for the past few days, Takumi was now riding his very own ostrich horse, which he named Kiwi. She may not have been as fast as Haku, but she didn't lack for effort.

"We'll make camp here for tonight," Rai said, climbing off Haku as they found a nice, small clearing surrounded by trees. The pair pulled out their bedrolls and lay them on the ground. Rai waited patiently until Takumi fell asleep against Kiwi, who slept just as peacefully. "Ok, come on Haku. Let's go," she whispered as she and her massive eel hound carefully and quietly tiptoed out of camp. "Don't worry, we'll be back before he even wakes up." She mounted Haku's saddle as the eel hound took off back to the direction of the ranch that Takumi had gotten Kiwi from. She had unfinished business there and she didn't need Takumi getting involved in it. They hadn't traveled very far from the ranch and with Haku running at full speed, they crossed the distance in no time. As she neared the ranch once more, she quickly spotted Pian exiting with all his belongings packed on a cart. As she approached him from behind, she could hear him grumbling under his breath angrily. She placed her hand on his shoulder and whipped him around, immediately placing her hand over his mouth to silence his shouts. "I have some questions for you and I'm not leaving until they're answered." Pian tried to struggle and break free, but Rai easily pulled him behind the ranch and threw him against the wall.

"What is the meaning of this? Haven't you bothered me enough?" he shouted.

"No," Rai answered. "I want to know what you have to do with slavers."

"S-slavers?" he gasped. "Wh-what are you talking about?"

"I saw you with that letter, the one with the slavers' emblem: the sword and the chain. Now, tell me what use for a ranch and inn do the slavers have?" Rai asked, her tone growing more sinister as she glared at the frightened man.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about!" he stammered, terrified.

"I wouldn't test my patience if I were you. Do you want to know what happened to the last slaver I encountered? I burned him to a crisp," she whispered sinisterly. "Even if you aren't a slaver, I'm more than happy to get rid of those willing to help scum like them."

"Ok! Ok! Just please don't hurt me!" he cried, desperate to save his own skin. "I never participated in the trade, but I just gave them a place to stop and rest on their routes."

"Routes? You mean slavers have been here?" she asked roughly, gripping the collar of his jacket and shaking him for answers.

"They used to! But I've already sent them a letter that I don't own this ranch anymore. I swear, I don't know anything else! They're sure to change their route in the future once they get my letter!"

"Then when was the last group here?" she asked.

"Th-they left the day before yesterday!" he stammered scaredly.

"And how many were there?"

"Not many," he replied quickly. "Four of them; they didn't have any slaves with them though. I-if you hurry, you can probably catch up to them on your eel hound. They tend to stay off the roads and usually hide in cav-"

"I know where they like to hide. You've been very helpful, Mr. Pian. Now get out of my sight before I change my mind about sparing you."

"Y-you're just going to let me go?" he asked.

"Did you want me to turn you over to the authorities?" she asked, but he quickly shook his head. "That's what I figured. Besides, if the authorities don't come after you, the slavers will. They don't take kindly to associates failing them. To me, you're just the dainty appetizer and I've got my sights set on the main course."

* * *

Back at their campsite, Takumi slowly stirred and sleepily opened his eyes. Kiwi didn't seem to notice him wake up as she continued sleeping peacefully. Takumi rubbed his sleepy eyes and yawned, noticing that it was still pitch dark. As he looked around, he quickly noticed that Rai and Haku were absent. "Rai?" he called out, "Haku?" When there was no response, he stood up and looked around curiously. "That's odd… Where are they?" He stepped out of their campsite and began wandering through the thick forest looking for the two missing members of their party. As he searched, he found a small cave and saw a faint light coming from inside. "Rai? Are you in there?" he asked, calling into the cave as he slowly entered. Suddenly, he felt something hard strike his head from behind and he fell forward, unconscious.

"Where the hell did this kid come from?" one man asked.

"Who cares? He almost discovered us!" shouted the second one.

"What are you two yammering on about?" a third man approached them from inside the cave.

"This kid almost found our hideout!" the second one explained.

"Where'd he come from?" the third asked.

"That's what I said!" the first one exclaimed.

"Well, he must be a traveler or something. Was he alone?"

"I didn't see anyone else with him," the first replied.

"Then we'll take him with us. He's young, decent build, he'll fetch a good price." As the third snapped his fingers, ordering the two men to lift Takumi up and drag him further into the cave.

Later, Takumi slowly awoke, feeling a sharp numb pain on the back of his head. He raised his arms to feel the back of his head, but felt something weighing his arms down slightly. He opened his eyes to find his wrists shackled to a long chain. "Wh-what's going on?" he cried.

"Hey! Quiet down over there!" one of the slaver shouted.

"Who are you?" Takumi asked.

"I said quiet down!" The slaver was ready to strike Takumi with his bare fist, but one of the others intervened. "Hey, people don't pay a lot for ugly slaves! You leave a mark on his face and we get a smaller cut and that'll come out of your share!"

"Grrr, fine! But I'd watch that mouth of yours," he whispered maliciously to Takumi.

"Y-you're slavers?" he whispered in terror and shock. This couldn't be happening! All he was doing was trying to find Rai and he had somehow ended up captive to slavers. Even in the city, he had heard stories of slavery and human trafficking, but he never thought they were real or that he'd ever become one of the victims! He could scream, resist, try anything! But he could see that these men were dangerous and armed and they certainly had no problem threatening him with harm. He didn't want to risk seeing them follow through on those threats.

"Come on, we can't stay here any longer! We can reach the next hideout before sunrise if we leave now! And who knows, maybe we'll happen on some more travellers?" The slavers quickly packed up their things and took ahold of the chain that Takumi was shackled to. Takumi lingered behind, looking back to the direction of their camp, hoping that Rai would find him in time. before he was roughly pulled along by his wrists. When the slavers weren't looking, Takumi tore off his headband before subtly dropping it on the ground. As he was yanked forward by the shackles around his wrists, he looked back at the headband. _'Come on, Rai. Please find me…'_

* * *

When Rai arrived back at camp, she raised a suspicious eyebrow at the noticeable absence of Takumi. "Takumi?" she called out, but there was no answer. She did, however, wake Kiwi up. The bird stood up and yawned before stretching her legs and shaking her feathers. "Where's Takumi?" Rai asked Kiwi, but the bird gave no answer. Instead, the ostrich horse bent her head down and began sniffing the ground. As Kiwi searched for her rider's scent, Rai and Haku followed closely behind after packing up their campsite. Following the bird, Rai quickly spotted the small cave and noticed the disturbed dirt outside it. "Hm… someone's been here recently." She looked up at the cave and entered it, holding a small flame in her hand to light her way. To anyone else, the cave would have appeared extremely ordinary, but Rai knew what to look for. She moved towards one of the walls and saw the metal spikes that were firmly buried into the rock. She lightly traced her fingers over the metal as memories flood her mind; memories of the shackles on her wrists rubbing and chaffing against her skin and uncomfortably falling asleep against rough, rocky walls.

Just then, she was pulled from her thoughts by the sound of Kiwi cawing loudly. She ran out of the cave as Kiwi approached her, holding a piece of pale red fabric in her mouth. Rai took the fabric from the ostrich horse and examined it in her hands, quickly recognized it as Takumi's headband. "No, no, no, this can't be happening…" First Takumi goes missing and then she discovers his headband abandoned near a cave that had just recently been occupied by slavers. She gripped Takumi's headband in anger, saying nothing as she held out the headband in front of Haku.

"How's your sense of smell?" she asked. Haku responded by leaning his hand down to her level and sniffing the headband. Once he got the scent, Haku raised his head, sniffing the air and searching for a trail. He grunted and shook his head, motioning ahead and that he had picked up Takumi's scent. Rai jumped onto Haku's saddle as the eel hound followed Takumi scent, with Kiwi closely behind them. With Haku's amazing speed, they would no doubt catch up, but that didn't mean they were going to take a leisurely pace.

If Takumi really was just in the wrong place in the wrong time and was taken by slavers, then she knew exactly what he would be in store for. If she didn't find him fast, he'd disappear off the face of the earth and into the underground slave market where he would spend the rest of his life as someone's property, being treated like an object rather than a person and being beaten every single day for even the slightest mistake. Only the lucky ones managed to escape. But still, to this day, slavery persisted as a lucrative market right underneath the noses of the greater judicial systems and ignorant masses. Knowing what Takumi's fate could be, she couldn't stand aside in good conscience and just let it happen. She knew they were still on the right track when she spotted a bright golden-yellow sash hanging from a tree branch. She pulled the long piece of fabric off the branch and recognized it as Takumi's as well. "We're on the right track. Come on!" At her call, Haku sped through the woods, closely followed by Kiwi, who followed as quickly as she could.

* * *

Takumi continued being pulled along by the captors, who only grew more impatient with his slow pace as sunrise drew nearer. His sluggish pace got on their nerves as they yanked so hard on his chains that the force of it pulled him to the ground. "Get up!" the slaver yelled, roughly grabbing Takumi by the arm and lifting him up onto his feet. Suddenly, a pillar of earth shot out of the ground at an angle and struck the slaver right in his side, knocking him to the ground several feet away roughly.

"What was that?" cried the other slavers, suddenly alert.

Rai suddenly burst through the trees and slammed her fist into the ground, shaking the earth beneath the slavers and causing them to lose balance. She quickly turned around and moved her arms in a sharp, open fashion as the shackles around Takumi's wrists suddenly opened, releasing him from his bonds. "Run!" she shouted to him before turning her attention back to the slavers. One shot a fireball at her, but she raised a wall of earth to block the attack. "Go!" she shouted, more urgently.

Takumi nodded and quickly took shelter behind a thick tree as he watched her kick up three boulders from the ground and punch them towards the slavers. Two managed to evade them but the third got hit right in the chest, knocking the air right out of him. One of the slavers circled around her while she was focusing her attention on the other. When she wasn't looking, the slaver behind her pulled the water out of his waterskin and bent the long tendril towards her, wrapping around her ankle. Just as she felt the tendril wrap around her ankle, the tendril pulled and she fell to the ground on her chest. In response, she dug her fingers into the earth as the ground beneath the waterbender suddenly swallowed him up to his waist. The disruption was enough to break the tendril as the water fell to the ground and soaked into the earth.

"Rai look out!" she heard Takumi yell. She sharply turned around just in time to see the firebender lunge towards her with a dagger. She stepped aside and grabbed his arm, using his momentum to effortlessly throw him over her shoulder. She advanced on him and the other two slavers once more until the firebender unleashed an endless stream of flames at her. In response, she raised the earth to shield herself once again. When she felt the heat finally die down, she stomped the ground, submerging her barrier back into the earth and prepared to attack, only to see that the slavers were gone.

"Dammit," she cursed. She was ready to pursue them without a thought, but quickly remembered her reason for tracking them down in the first place. She turned around and shouted in urgency, "Takumi!" She sighed in relief at the sight of him quickly running up to him at her call, slowly followed by Haku and Kiwi. Up until she found him, her mind had been reeling with images of Takumi in chains having to endure the horror she did, but the sight of him alive and well purged those dark thoughts from her mind.

"Before you say it, I know. How could I get captured, I need to be more careful, and…" he began listing off everything he expected to be lectured by her for, but was instead cut off when Rai suddenly and securely embraced him. She wrapped her arms around his body and rested her chin on top of his head. "Umm...It's good to see you too?" he asked awkwardly, unsure of what exactly was going on.

"I'm just so glad you're safe," she whispered before quickly pulling away and placing her hands firmly on Takumi's shoulders as her typical, stern expression returned. "But you should have been more careful! Wandering around on your own in the middle of the night?" she scolded.

"Wandering?! I was out looking for you! I woke up and you and Haku were gone!" Takumi countered.

"It doesn't matter where I was," she quickly replied. "I had something to attend to that didn't concern you. I'm just glad I found you before…" Takumi's expression softened when, for the first time since he had met Rai, he saw true and genuine fear and concern in her eyes.

He sighed. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean it. We should go before any of their friends get wind of this. I don't relish the thought of being rescued by you twice in one day," he chuckled, making his way over to Kiwi, who greeted him affectionately.

"Agreed," she said, handing Takumi the headband and sash he had dropped, "but there's just one thing I need to do." Takumi looked at her in confusion as she made her way over to the leftover slaver still trapped in the earth. With a firm stomp of her heel, the slaver was lifted up to her eye level, but still completely trapped within a cylinder of earth. "Hey! Wake up!" she yelled, slapping him awake.

"What are you doing?! Let's go!" Takumi cried, tugging on her sleeve in urgency.

"Not yet!" she shouted pulling herself from Takumi's grip and turning her attention to the waking slaver. "Where were you and your party going?" The slaver remained silent, which only served to infuriate Rai, who punched him square in the jaw. "Talk!" The slaver merely grunted from the hit and began snickering as a sinister grin spread across his face.

"What was it the boy called you? Rai?" the slaver asked, cocking his eyebrow confidently as if he was the one leading this conversation. "Those defiant green eyes, the scar over the left eye, the blonde hair is new though and you're wearing it differently. They'll need to update their info. I'll have you know, he's told us all about you: the one that got away, and he's put out a generous bounty."

"Umm…" Takumi stepped up nervously, confused about the conversation between the two. "Rai, what is he talking about?"

"You know him then?" she asked with a smile before leaning in close and darkly whispering, "Where can I find him?"

"I don't answer questions to scum like you!" he answered, spitting in her face.

Rai blink and briefly flinched as the wad of spit hit her cheek. She casually wiped it off her cheek with her glove, as if she was completely unphased by it. "If you won't talk, then you're of no use to me…" Rai took a step back and stopped her foot into the ground and raised a large boulder over her head, threatening to drop it on his head and crush his skull. "You're just another filthy slaver that the world can do without."

Just as Rai prepared to drop the boulder on the slaver, Takumi jumped between them. "Rai! Stop this!" he cried desperately.

Rai held herself back from releasing the boulder and glared angrily at Takumi for interfering. "Get out of the way, Takumi! You have no idea what this is about!"

"I can make an educated guess. I'm young, not stupid. But this isn't the way!"

"The world is better off without scum like him! How can you stand there and defend him?" she shouted.

"Calm down and I'll tell you," he pleaded. Rai narrowed her eyes at him angrily as this little boy stood in her way of vengeance. She wasn't sure what compelled her next action, whether an unwillingness to hurt Takumi or admit that he was right, she couldn't be sure, but she did harmlessly drop the boulder aside.

"Talk then, before I change my mind," she said firmly.

"I'll start by saying that I have no intention of letting him go. He needs to pay, there's no doubt about that, but killing him...That's not the way. Bind him, and we can leave him with the local authorities to deal with in the next town."

Rai pushed past Takumi and continued to interrogate the slaver. "Tell me what I want to know and I'll let you live. If you do know about me, then I'm sure you know all about what I did to Goro's subordinate."

"But I didn't hear you say please," he snickered darkly.

Rai growled under her breath, but before she could move, Takumi sighed and stepped forward to take over. "Please...Tell us what you know."

"Oh yeah? And what do I get out of it?"

Takumi glanced over at Rai for a second before turning back to the slaver. "I don't think I need to explain what she will do to you. I can't hold her back forever."

Everyone remained silent for a few moments, with Rai frowning at Takumi, who did not notice since he focused on the captive slaver. Finally, the slaver cracked a smile and snickered. "Heh, I like you, boy. Very well. Unfortunately, I don't know his current whereabouts. He keeps moving from place to place, never staying for too long. You should know this much, girl," he said looking at Rai and earning a venomous glare before continuing, "However, I can possibly point you in the right direction. You see, I don't think you're the only ones hunting him."

Rai scoffed, "Heh, the list of people that want him dead isn't short. You better start giving me something useful or I'll-"

"Look for the Blue Spirit," the slaver interjected. "Find that one, and I'm sure it can lead you to Goro. Word is, the Blue Spirit's been hounding his movements and disrupting slaver parties for some time now."

"The Blue Spirit? He's just a myth, an old wives' tale!" Rai exclaimed in disbelief.

"Wait, the Blue Spirit. As in THE Blue Spirit?" Takumi asked.

This caught Rai's attention. "You know something about this?"

"Are you kidding? Everyone knows about the Blue Spirit. They say he first appeared shortly after Avatar Aang returned before just disappearing. Now they say he's back hunting all sorts of criminals. But nobody can figure out whether he's just a person or if he's really a spirit. Almost as soon as he arrived, stories of him all of a sudden stopped. Like he just disappeared without a trace overnight!"

"So, someone's continuing the legend for his own purposes," Rai noted before turning back to the slaver. "But what does he want with Goro? Your people must know something about his identity!

"I've told you all I know. But where Goro goes, the Spirit goes or at least tries to track him down. I don't know where Goro was going exactly, only that he had some business in the Fire Nation."

"The Fire Nation? Who else knows about your party here?"

"Only our commander, but he and his troop are weeks away. I am at your mercy," he said, bowing his head in defeat.

Takumi looked at Rai, silently anticipating her next move. "You held up your end of the deal. We're done here. Let's go."

"You're just going to leave him here?" Takumi asked.

"Yeah, you're just going to leave me here?" the slaver asked as well.

"I said I wouldn't kill him. If anything, I'm sparing you from seeing it, Takumi. When we're gone, he can yell for help all he wants. Someone'll find him… eventually," she replied nonchalantly as she mounted Haku's saddle. When she noticed Takumi's concerned expression, she continued, "You wanna bring him alone, then you can carry him."

"Fair enough, then. Hear that, pal? You're coming with us."

"Swell," the slaver replied with dull enthusiasm as he rolled his eyes.

Takumi called Kiwi over and reached into his pack, pulling out a bundle of rope. He looked at Rai and back to the slaver. "My friend is going to release you now. But don't try anything."

Rai stomped her foot, lowering the earth that restrained the slaver, who fell to the ground on his knees. He didn't resist or try to fight and instead raised his hands behind his head in surrender. Takumi moved behind him and took a hold of the slaver's wrists, tying them behind his back securely with the rope. "So uh...Haku's not gonna try and, I dunno, eat this guy or something, is he? I can see him giving this man the stink eye."

"I make no promises," she replied. She leaned forward and gently pet Haku's shoulder, whispering, "Good boy," as the eel hound glared at the slaver maliciously.

Takumi proceeds to help the slaver up onto his mount, since the slaver lacked the use of his hands. "Isn't there another way we could do this?" the slaver asked as he lay across Kiwi's body on his stomach. "This is rather demeaning."

"Well, it's either that or you risk falling off every few feet because you've got no hands to hold on with," Takumi replied. After getting onto Kiwi himself, Takumi turned his attention back to Rai and Haku. He just smiled and nodded his head, which Rai did not respond to. Instead, she and Haku simply took off towards the path leading to the next town. "Let's go."

For the most part, the ride was silent. Rai and Haku kept a faster pace ahead of Takumi, keeping some distance from the captive slaver that rode with him. They were still a fair ways away from the next town while the sun slowly began rising. "What is it that you and Rai were talking about?" Takumi asked, finally breaking the uncomfortable silence, "Who's Goro?"

"Heh," the slaver chuckled, "She went through all that trouble to rescue you from us and she never even told you anything about herself, did she?"

"Well…" Takumi had known Rai well enough now to know that she wasn't the sharing type. But he did know something about her that no one else did, a secret that she trusted him to keep.

"Heh," the slaver chuckled again. "Let's just say she and Goro have a history and it's not a good one. You may have been able to stop her from killing me, but if she and Goro cross paths again, that is one fight you'll want to stay out of."

"What happened between them?" Takumi asked.

"What always happens when a person in power uses that power to oppress and abuse those beneath them. You want to know so much about it, ask her yourself." The slaver remained silent for the rest of the ride as the arrived into the next town. Rai did nothing as Takumi set about turning the slaver over to the local authorities, who were more grateful than he expected. Apparently, catching slavers much harder than people gave it credit for. They asked him a few questions of their own before taking the slaver and letting Takumi be on his way.

"You should have let me kill him," Rai said plainly as Takumi rejoined her.

"What would that have accomplished?" Takumi asked. "When you take a life, you'll hurt part of yourself too."

"He wouldn't have been my first and he would have been far from the last. Besides, I seem to recall Avatar Korra and her allies offing a few of their enemies: Unalaq, the Red Lotus… What's the difference between this and that? Why should I stay my hand when my enemies will try just as hard to kill me?"

"Well…" Takumi started, trying to come up with a response.

"Human trafficking extends far deeper than you realize, Takumi. I'm betting that he'll be released by tomorrow. It's not uncommon for members of law enforcement and politicians to secretly support the slave trade. It is a lucrative business after all. Corruption runs deep, especially in the big cities. So if the justice system can't be counted on, what other way is there?" Takumi stood there, silent and unable to come up with an answer. "You're a smart kid, Takumi, and you have a good heart. But you are also naive, naive and ignorant to the true hardships and horrors of this world. But, maybe it's better that way," she said as Haku turned to continue moving forward and out of the town.

"What do you mean?" he asked as Kiwi kept a leisurely stroll next to Haku.

"You've got an air of optimism about you, Takumi, that's probably what I like most about you. If you knew half the stuff I knew, experienced what I had to go through…"

"What did you go through?" he asked.

Rai hesitated to answer, but eventually spoke, "Not today, Takumi, not today."

* * *

 **A big thank you to a best friend of mine, Powershade117 for helping me with this chapter with his wonderful ideas and super fun RP.**

 **Next chapter: Takumi convinces Rai to seek airbending tutelage, but she immediately changes her mind upon discovering the airbender is a Nomad.**


	6. The Air Nomad

**I'm slowly getting back into some drawing and writing. Anyway, enjoy the chapter :)**

* * *

In the bustling marketplace of Dan Tu, Takumi and Rai explored the variety of shops, each selling their impressive wares. "Oh, cool!" Takumi exclaimed, quickly rushing to one of the stores, which caught Rai's attention. Takumi entered the weapons shop and picked up one of the bows on display and drew back the bow, testing its quality.

"Do you even know how to use that?" she asked.

"Believe it or not, I do!" Takumi exclaimed. "Mom wanted me to join a sports team at school, but I wasn't really good at all those contact sports, so I chose archery. I got pretty good at it," he boasted confidently. Rai handed Takumi and arrow and motioned to the practice target set up nearby. Takumi took the arrow and nocked the arrow onto the bowstring and pulled back. He kept his arm straight, but relaxed as his fingers just gently touched the corner of his mouth. He carefully aimed at the target and released his hold on the bowstring, allowing it to roll right out form under his fingertips. The arrow _whooshed_ through the air and struck the target on the first ring from the center.

"Hm, not bad," Rai said, genuinely impressed.

"Thanks, I'm a little out of practice though," he replied with a nervous chuckle at her compliment. "Ouch, I dunno if I'll be able to afford this," he said, looking at the price tag on the bow.

"Well, keep looking around and you might find something more in your price range." As they perused the market, the pair passed by a cloaked and hooded old woman hunched over a crystal ball.

"Ah, I see much within you, my dear," the fortune teller spoke, causing Rai and Takumi to stop and look at her.

"Are you talking to us?" he asked, but the woman continued on.

"I see much pain and strife in you, child," she said, pointing to Rai. As she spoke, her hands carefully hovered back and forth over the crystal ball. "But you bury your pain deep in the earth. You use rage as a shield; a rage that burns like Sozin's comet. Your path is like a mighty river and yours is not the only one. Other paths will merge with yours: a wanderer, a hero in blue and enemies new and old, familiar. And yet, I can see no end to your river. There will be suffering, there will be pain, and there will be death. But I also see joy, content, and family. The road ahead will be marred with much suffering and your resolve will be tested, but if you remain unbroken, you will emerge like a sword hammered and honed so that it will never break, more powerful than you could ever imagine."

"My future is what I make of it, not what some cooky fortune teller says it will be," Rai argued.

"The chains are broken, but are you truly free?"

Rai's expression suddenly shifted as this woman's words troubled her. She said nothing and sharply turned away from the fortune teller while Takumi followed after her, confused at the exchange between them. "What was she talking about?" he asked.

"Beats me. Those fortune tellers are all scam artists anyway. Just forget about it; it's nothing important," she said, continuing through the marketplace before stopping inside a small book shop. She carefully examined some books on the shelf before turning to the clerk and asking, "Do you have any airbending manuals?"

"Airbending? Sorry, ever since the Hundred Year War, any Air Nomad learning material was destroyed. And nowadays any airbenders who want to learn airbending just goes to the Air Nomads directly," the clerk answered. "I've got some manuals for firebending, earthbending and waterbending though, if you're interested."

"No, not waterbending," Rai answered firmly, which Takumi cocked an eyebrow in confusion at.

"Well, then I'm afraid I can't help you there. If you're keen on learning some airbending, there is an airbender in town! She usually hangs out in the town square giving out free lessons."

As Rai and Takumi exited the store, he ran up next to her and asked, "Why do you want an airbending manual? I thought you already knew how to airbend."

"I only know the simple moves like blasts of air, but I still have yet to learn any of the finer techniques."

"Then why not go see this airbender and learn from them?" he suggested.

"The same reason I haven't done that for the past six years. During Korra's time when the Air Nation was revived, they pledged their loyalty to the Avatar and vowed to assist with the Avatar's mission. I've been avoiding the Air Nomads just as much as I've been avoiding the White Lotus because of how close they are to the Avatar."

"But how are you going to learn more airbending if you avoid the Nomads?"

"The same way I learned firebending and earthbending," she whispered, "manuals and observation. And since the former isn't an option with airbending, I'll just have to stick with the latter."

"Wait, you mean you never got any formal training for earth or firebending?" Takumi asked quietly, shocked.

"That's right," she answered. "I couldn't risk any tutor or instructor figuring out who I was or seeing me bend another element."

"Maybe the airbender here isn't an Air Nomad; they might not be affiliated with them," Takumi reasoned.

"Sorry, but I won't risk the Air Nomads discovering me," she said, crossing her arms defiantly.

"Come on, how do you know this person is an Air Nomad? They might just be a regular airbender," Takumi reasoned. "I remember hearing a lot of stories about airbenders who didn't join the Air Nomads after Harmonic Convergence."

"It's still too much of a risk. If so much as a single Air Nomad or even airbender finds out about me, they'll all know and then the whole world knows."

"Well, don't take this the wrong way, but I think you need the help. Come on, just go in and say that you're a novice airbender looking to tighten her skills. It'll be fine, trust me," he said with a reassuring smile.

Rai growled under her breath. "Fine, but then we leave. I don't want to stay any longer around an Air Nomad than I have to."

"Don't worry. I won't tell," he smiled with a cheeky wink.

Rai scoffed and rolled her eyes at Takumi's wink before returning to her stoic expression. They headed into the town square to find the supposed airbender, but when they spotted her, Rai quickly cursed under her breath and ducked behind the corner of a building. "Dammit! She's definitely an Air Nomad. She's got the wing suit and everything. Forget it, this isn't happening," she said firmly, making her way back the way they came.

"Oh come on, we're so close. You can't just back out now!" he exclaimed, grabbing the large sleeve of her shirt and pulling her back. "What happened to just pretending you're an airbender?"

"That was different! She's clearly an Air Nomad! Ever since the Air Nomads re-emerged, they've dedicated themselves to the Avatar. She finds out, then I lose the anonymity I worked very hard to keep…" Rai stood silently, thinking for a moment. "I have an idea. You," she said, pointing at him, "go up to her and ask her to show you some airbending techniques and I'll watch from afar."

"What? Me!? Why do I have to be your scapegoat?"

"Because this was your idea in the first place," she said, firmly poking his chest with her index finger, "and no one will raise an eye at a kid, especially a non-bender kid asking to see some airbender techniques. Just make up some excuse that you're a fan or something."

"But-"

"Just go!" she exclaimed, pushing Takumi out into the street while she hid behind the building to watch.

Takumi grumbled under his breath, but composed himself. He walked up toward the Air Nomad, who is in the middle of showing off her airbending skills to a group of school children. They giggled and watched in awe as she balanced a ball in the middle of a sphere of swirling air. When she finished and the children were led away by their teacher, he approached her at an excited pace with a grin plastered on his face. _'I can't believe I'm doing this,'_ he thought as the Air Nomad noticed his presence and turned around. She was dressed in the standard Air Nomad wingsuit and had a darker complexion and blue eyes, a clear sign of Water Tribe descent. Her hair was short and straight and only went to just over her shoulders.

"Wow, that was… uh, that was some sweet moves. Very...airbendery," he said awkwardly, mentally kicking himself while Rai slapped her forehead with the palm of her hand and groaned.

"Thanks!" she exclaimed with a wide and warm smile. "I'm Sati! What's your name?"

Takumi stammered, unsure of how to take this friendly reaction to what he thought was dumb and nervous babbling. "Uh...Ta-ku-mi…"

"Takumi?" she clarified, able to hear him even though he was quietly mumbling his name. "That's a nice name. So what can I do for you today, Takumi?"

Takumi took a deep breath, feeling both embarrassed and guilty for what he was about to do. "Well, I'd just like to say that I'm a big fan… of airbending, that is! I mean, I haven't taken any of your classes or, you know, I can't bend, but, I just…

"Well, just because you can't bend doesn't mean you're not allowed to learn some of the techniques! In fact, it's all because of the Air Acolytes that the Air Nomad cultures still exists today!" she exclaimed with a wide smile.

"I suppose that's true," Takumi replied, nervously scratching the back of his head. But Takumi relaxed, seeing that Sati was very friendly and understanding, even to his fumbling and nervous babbling. "I was wondering if I could possibly see some?" he asked with a shrug, while giving an innocent smile.

"Of course!" she beamed, clapping her hands in excitement before taking a ready stance and encouraging Takumi to join her. "Now, airbending is all about moving with the wind, being light on your feet," she explained.

"Uh, ok…" he said, trying to mimic her stance. Rai continued watching from afar, trying to memorize the movements. "Like this?"

"Great!" she smiled encouragingly. "Just widen your stance a little and keep your shoulders relaxed." She gently adjusted Takumi's stance while giving a supportive smile.

Takumi couldn't help but blush with embarrassment as he whispered to himself, "I hope Rai ISN'T watching this…"

However, Rai was observing the entire thing vigilantly and groaned, "Ugh, unbelievable," shaking her head at how ridiculous she found Takumi to be behaving.

Takumi held the stance that Sati showed him and after a few seconds, he couldn't help but smile. "This is actually pretty cool! I feel...I don't know exactly."

"That's kinda the idea. You don't have to worry about overthinking anything. Just let things flow naturally, free like the wind."

"I think I get it. So uh, what next?" he asked.

"Now, let's try some arm movements. With this one, you want to keep your arms wide and loose. Try not to stiffen up and keep your muscles relaxed. Usually, we use this move to generate tornadoes. The more airbenders moving in conjunction with each other, the larger the tornado we can make!" she gleefully explained.

"But...I can't bend," Takumi replied with a brief smile and disappointed slouch.

"So what?" she asked, laying a supportive and gentle hand on his shoulder. "That doesn't mean you shouldn't get to learn the techniques! The Air Nomads help all people, benders and non-benders," she recited proudly.

"Wow, that's so cool," he smiled.

"I'm afraid that's all I can do today, Takumi. I need to get something to eat for myself and my air bison. But if you'd like, I'll be here tomorrow if you want to learn more!"

"Thanks! This was a lot of fun. It was nice meeting you, Sati," he said, extending his hand to shake hers.

"It was a pleasure meeting you as well, Takumi!" Sati smiled back, shaking his hand as well. The two went their separate ways as Takumi reunited with Rai by the building she had been hiding behind.

"Way to play it cool," she remarked sarcastically.

"What?" he asked, feigning ignorance.

"You're lucky she was so dense that she couldn't see you were so obviously hiding something. But," she said, cracking a brief smile, "you did good. I saw enough so I can take it from here." Rai began walking away, but Takumi spoke up.

"But, she said she'd be available for lessons tomorrow."

She stopped and looked at him from the corner of her eye over her shoulder. "Do I need to repeat myself?"

"Oh, come on. You haven't even seen her bend yet. At least wait for that? Plus, I dunno, but I feel like I'm even learning something," he muttered, nervously fidgeting with his fingers.

"If you want to go and learn airbending movements from her, that's your business. I won't stop you."

"Where will you be?" he asked as she walked away.

"Where else? Back at camp," she replied, not even turning around.

Just as Rai turned to leave, she jumped at the sight of Sati standing right in front of her and yelped in surprise. She quickly calmed herself and regained her composure while Sati stood there with her arms crossed and her face lit with a warm smile. "You know, if you wanted to learn too, you could have joined your friend here."

"Wah! Sati?!" Takumi exclaimed in shock.

"Hi, Takumi," she greeted, giving him a friendly wave before turning back to hardened and stoic Rai.

"Pass, now excuse me," she grunted, pushing Sati aside and pulling her hood over her head as she continued back through the marketplace.

Sati glanced back at Takumi with that same smile while he looked back and forth between both girls with a dumbfounded look on his face. "Uh, Rai. Wait for me!" he cried, jogging after Rai, while moving around Sati.

Back at their camp just beyond the edge of the town, Rai was practicing the movements she watched Sati and Takumi perform while Takumi simply watched her from the side. She wasn't airbending yet, but rather only practicing the movements to better remember and refine them to her fighting preference. "That Sati," he whispered to himself, "Did she know the whole time?"

"What was that?" Rai called, stopping her practice after just barely hearing Takumi say something.

"Oh, uh, nothing! Sorry to disturb you," he called back.

"Whatever," she scoffed, returning to her practice. As she practiced the wide arm movements, she had difficulty keeping her arms relaxed as Sati had suggested to Takumi. She was far more used to the stiff and strong movements in earth and firebending and she had managed to incorporate that into airbending, but all she managed to accomplish in that art was sudden bursts of air. The free flowing and relaxed movements were just so… foreign to her. She was pulled from her focus when she heard a twig snap nearby. Over the years, she had developed a very acute sense of hearing, always on alert for a potential attack. It made falling asleep very difficult. She had become such a light sleeper that the slightest sound was enough to rouse her. She stood still, not wanting to tip off their would-be ambushers that she was on to them. She stomped her foot on the ground, reading the seismic waves. _'Three,'_ Rai counted. She turned to Takumi and called out to him. "Takumi, come over here!"

"Why?" he asked.

"Just come over here!" she shouted more urgently.

Takumi sighed and got up from where he was sitting. "What?" he asked once he reached her. Rai quickly pushed Takumi behind her as she kicked her heel into the ground, sending a shockwave into the earth as a ridge of rocks rose up from the ground towards the thick trees that surrounded their camp. Three men cloaked in black, obscuring their faces, emerged from the cover of the trees brandishing weapons in their hands. The two in front wielded a pair of daggers and meteor hammer respectively while the third behind them had a bow at the ready.

"Get to cover!" she shouted quickly, jumping forward to engage the attackers while Takumi took cover behind a tree. He peeked out from behind the trunk protecting him and watched Rai fight the three attackers simultaneously.

She raised an earth barrier, shielding herself from the arrows shot by the third attacker. However, her barrier was broken by the meteor hammer as Rai backflipped away to avoid the blow. She saw the dual dagger wielding attacker advance towards her from the corner of her eye and quickly kicked three boulders up from the ground and kicked them towards him. He swiped two away, chipping at the rocks with his daggers, but the third struck him right in the chest, knocking him back. She heard the clinking of the chain behind her and just stepped back in time to avoid the brutish strike of the meteor hammer. As the assailant pulled the meteor hammer back and swung it over his head, preparing to throw it again, Rai metalbent the chain, pulling the attacker off his feet and pushing him into a nearby tree as the chain went around the trunk, securing him in place.

"Rai, look out!" she heard Takumi call. Rai whipped around in time to see the archer firing arrows at her, which she blocked with another earth barrier. Haku snarled angrily and spun around, knocking the archer to the ground with his thick tail. She pushed her foot into the ground, sending a fissure of earth directly at the archer. The earth directly beneath his feet suddenly shot up, catapulting the archer into the air as his bow and quiver of arrows fell to the ground.

"Fall back!" the dagger wielding one called as the archer roughly fell through the tree canopies while the bound attacker got loose from his bonds. Rai was ready to pursue them, but noticed a piece of paper they had dropped in their retreat.

"Do you think they were with the slavers?" Takumi asked, rushing to her side.

"Not quite. It looks these men were here for you," Rai said, handing Takumi the paper, which to his shock was a picture of himself.

"They were after me?" he asked in shock, taking the picture in his hands to examine it.

"Seems like being out of the city isn't enough to satisfy your father," she commented.

"I can't believe he wants me out of the picture so- Oh my god!" he exclaimed.

"What?"

"Y-you're hurt!" Takumi shouted, pointing at the small throwing knife that was plunged into her arm, crimson blood soaking into the gold yellow fabric of her shirt. He watched in shock and awe as she effortlessly pulled the knife from her arm, not even hissing or flinching at the pain. "You can heal that with waterbending, right?" he asked.

"I don't waterbend," she said firmly. Haku moved over to Rai and sniffed the bloody wound on her arm, carefully licking the blood away to clean the wound. Rai pulled a small satchel from one of the packs on Haku's saddle. She set it down on a large rock as she began taking off her pink and green wrap, quickly followed by her gold, floral shirt, leaving her only in a mustard yellow tank top. Takumi gasped quietly as his hand quickly flew to his mouth. Nearly every inch of her arms and shoulders were covered in old, faded scars. He was so distracted by staring at all her scars that he hadn't noticed Rai had already cleaned the blood from her arms and even stitched up the wound all by herself. He was doubly amazed that she managed to do it all by herself, not even visibly bothered by the pain.

"D-do you need any help?" Takumi asked as he watched her trying to wrap a bandage around her arm.

"Sure," she replied, handing him the roll. "Not too tight," she cautioned as Takumi began to wrap the bandage around her arm.

"How's that?" he asked, leaning back as he finished tying the bandage.

"Not bad," she replied. She reached for her floral shirt and, after washing it clean of blood in a nearby stream, began sewing a patch of dark green fabric over the hole. When she finished, she put her shirt and wrap back on.

"Are you sure you're ok?" Takumi asked.

"It's just a scratch. I've had worse," she replied casually.

"And here I thought we were done with these goons," Takumi sighed, kicking the dirt.

"It seems that your father really wants you dead. He might send more after this." As Rai said that, Takumi's eyes drifted over to the bow and arrow dropped by one of their attackers. "What are you doing?" she asked as he went over to the fallen weapon and picked it up.

"Well, I couldn't afford the one in the market," he said, pulling back on the bowstring to test its quality. "Every time we get attacked or in a fight, you're the one who has to do all the work while I run or hide. I want to be more useful," he said sincerely with a smile.

"Heh," Rai chuckled, cracking a smile of her own. "Then why don't you go get us something to eat? All that fighting has made me work up an appetite," she said, shooting a fireball at the pile of firewood they had gathered beforehand.

"So it's true…"

Rai and Takumi turned around sharply upon hearing a new voice. From beyond the bushes emerged a familiar Air Nomad with bright blue eyes and an eager smile on her face.

"S-Sati? What are you doing here?!" Takumi exclaimed in shock. He quickly noticed Rai stiffen as she shifted into an attack ready stance, holding the position strong despite the injury she had sustained just moments ago.

"It's really you!" Sati beamed excitedly, marching up to Rai. "I knew you were out there somewhere, but I never thought I'd be the one to find you!" Sati bent down to her knees and bowed respectfully to Rai.

However, Rai only responded to this act with a vicious glare. "Stop that!" she spat. Sati looked up from her kneeled position, her smile almost gone and replaced with a frown of unpleasant surprise and concern.

"Uh...Rai? She's just showing admiration," Takumi said, trying to diffuse the tension.

"Save for someone who actually wants it! You didn't see anything, you hear me?" she whispered to Sati threateningly.

"Wh-Wha...?" Sati stammered in shock.

"Did I stutter?" Rai narrowed her eyes viciously.

"Well, n-no. But-" Sati began, rising to her feet. "You're the Avatar, the one chosen to bring peace between the spirits and our world. I have to inform-"

"You so much as say a word about this to anyone and I will end you!" Rai shouted angrily, whipping her arms out as the metal plates on her bracers suddenly extended into long blades over her forearm and hands. .

"Whoa, whoa, Rai! Isn't that a little harsh?" Takumi asked. He looked at Sati and was shocked to see a completely different side to her, one more timid and scared.

"I've worked hard for my quiet life of anonymity and I won't have it be ruined by one giddy little airbender! You seem to be forgetting that I gave you a similar ultimatum the night I saved your life."

"You would threaten a child?" Sati cried in shock.

"Hey!" Takumi protested. "You're like a day older than me!"

"I-I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to offend you, either of you. Please forgive me, Avatar…" Sati said, standing up straight and bowing forward with her hands together.

"Don't call me that!" Rai snapped.

"But you are the Avatar! Where have you been all this time? Why have you not come forward?"

"Not important. We're leaving," Rai said to Takumi, completely ignoring Sati. Rai got onto Haku and the duo left, followed closely by Kiwi and Takumi. However, as the two creatures rode off with their respective riders, Rai soon noticed Sati walking right beside them and keeping pace. Haku stopped as Rai turned around to address her. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Well, you said we're leaving, didn't you?" she chuckled. Takumi couldn't help but let out a small snicker under his breath, but it didn't go unnoticed by Rai.

Rai growled under her breath, "I didn't mean you! Now get lost!"

"Sorry, but you've presented me with a once in a lifetime opportunity. How many Air Nomads can claim that they were the ones to discover the Avatar? As an Air Nomad, it is my duty to assist you in your duties of upholding balance. Plus, I doubt you'd actually kill a face as cute as mine," she said with her big blue eyes, "So I'm coming along!" she asserted, strutting proudly ahead of the Rai and Takumi.

Rai growled again and raised her fist, encasing Sati's lower legs in earth. "Let me make myself clear. I have nor ever will have any intention of becoming the Avatar. The way I see it, the world doesn't need the Avatar anymore and I have no interest in the job. You and your Nomads can do whatever they want as long as they don't interfere with my life!" When she finished, Haku took off with incredible speed into the distance. Takumi followed her lead, trailing a bit behind.

However, it wasn't long before he saw Sati zooming by him and catching up to Rai on an air scooter. Rai looked to her right in shock as their eyes met. "You like it?" she asked motioning to the air scooter and not losing the smile on her face. "Learned it from reading up on your predecessor. I can teach you more, you know."

"I said get lost!" Rai yelled, blowing a gust of wind while riding Haku in an attempt to knock Sati off, but she easily recovered on another air scooter.

"Not a bad attempt, but it could use some work," she complimented. Rai tried again, this time with firebending, her anger and annoyance fuelling the flames. But Sati simply leapt off the air scooter with the grace of a dancer, flipping and twirling until she landed firmly on the ground directly in front of Rai and Haku. The large lizard stopped in shock at this sudden act, leaving Rai and Sati to make eye contact once again. Still smiling, Sati said, "But I can see that you're starting to get serious, not to mention a bit more fun. So how about a friendly wager?"

"A wager?" Rai asked, eyebrow cocked in confusion.

"Yes, I do so love a good game every now and then. I challenge you to a duel, Avatar. First one to be knocked on her behind loses."

"Why would I even agree to this?"

"Well, it is obvious you can't catch me, and I doubt you're as cold hearted as you claim. So forgive me if I am not threatened by you. If I were to inform the other Nomads…" Sati trailed, letting the thought hang as Rai's glare intensified. "I knew it. But okay, I see you're not one for some theatrics. Sheesh, on top of teaching you airbending, I'm gonna have to teach you to smile more often. Anyway, here. Are. My. Terms!" she declared, posing dramatically.

"Oh, this should be good," Takumi muttered to himself.

"If you win, I return to my quiet life as an Air Nomad, you never hear from me again, and whenever someone comes asking about any possible Avatar sightings, I will feign ignorance."

"And if you win?"

"If I win, I get to travel with you and your companion...AND become YOUR teacher in the art of smiles and airbending!" she proclaimed, pointing dramatically at Rai. "What say you, Avatar?" she asked with the same smile, but with a bit more confidence in her eyes.

"Rai?" Takumi asked.

"I just washed my shirt, so I'd rather not get my clothes all bloody again, so if this is the only way to get rid of you, then fine," Rai agreed, stepping off Haku. She stepped forward, opposite of Sati in the small clearing they had stopped in as both girls took a battle ready stance. Rai and Sati circled each other, with Rai taking a serious fighting stance coupled with a hardened glare while Sati was far more relaxed and sported an excited smile.

Rai was the first to make a move, thrusting her arm forward to unleash a fireball, but Sati easily dissipated it with a gentle gust of wind. She tried to attack with the earth next, stomping her foot into the ground and raising pillars of rock towards Sati. Instead, Sati used the momentum of the rising earth to launch herself into the air. Rai then began attacking with gusts of air occasionally switching to launching small boulders while Sati effortlessly used her airbending to jump from tree to tree. As Sati leapt from tree to tree, she blew vertical and horizontal blades of wind towards Rai, who simply brought her hand down perpendicular to each blade, slicing through them. Rai raised her arm to strike Sati with a fireball, but a sharp pain shot through her arm from the wound the had received only moments before. She dropped her arm, unable to complete her attack as Sati blasted her with a swirling vortex of wind. The air struck her right in the chest and knocked Rai onto her back.

"You are beaten! I WIN! YIPEE!" Sati squealed as she jumped up and down in glee.

Rai angrily pushed herself off the ground, unable to say anything as her hand went to her arm, gently cupping the wound to try and ease the sharp pain. Takumi ran over to her in worry, but she gently pushed him back. "I'm fine," she insisted.

"You rely too much on your rage in a fight. That is why you were beaten. Oh, this is going to be so exciting! Me, traveling with the Avatar! It's going to be so much fun traveling the world and helping people and helping you become a fully realized-"

"ENOUGH!" Rai shouted, causing both Takumi and Sati to flinch at her sudden outburst. "You won this little wager, yes, but all that means is you get to travel with me and teach me airbending. But I have no intention of ever becoming your 'fully realized Avatar'. I never asked to be the Avatar so why should I accept a role that I didn't even want? I don't want to hear another word from you about how I should 'come forward', do I make myself clear, Air Nomad?" she whispered grimly.

"Y-yes ma'am," she squeaked. "The name's Sati. I believe I heard Takumi call you 'Rai'?" she asked, extended a hand for a handshake.

Rai ignored this gesture and darkly whispered, "And don't ever call me 'Avatar'."

"I won't have to now that I know your name, Rai," she said with a smile.

"You're not riding with me, let me make that clear," Rai said seriously.

"That won't be a problem!" Sati smiled. She pulled a white whistle from behind her back and blew into it, generating a low hum. Then, a large air bison appeared over the canopy of trees and landed with a great thud. "This is Daisy," Sati introduced, rubbing the large black nose of the air bison affectionately. "I think she's very excited to be traveling with you guys."

Daisy bellowed loudly and licked Rai's arm and face. "Ugh, disgusting!" Rai shook her arm to whip off the thick saliva that cling to her before wiping her face with a cloth.

"Wow, she's huge!" Takumi said in awe.

Rai simply scoffed as Haku turned away and the continued down their path. Takumi caught up next to her on Kiwi as Sati flew on Daisy above them. "Well, look at the bright side, at least this way you can make sure she doesn't tell anyone about you."

* * *

 **And with that, one more joins the group! Once again I must give a big thank you to my friend Powershade117 for his help with this chapter. We joked about this earlier, but it's pretty much true now, so I might as well just call him my co-author XD**

 **Next chapter: Rai begins her airbending training with Sati, but the student doesn't respond well to her teacher's methods.**


	7. Training

**Once again, another shoutout to my buddy Powershade117 for helping with the chapter.**

* * *

 _'"Other streams will merge with yours: a wanderer…"'_ The fortune teller's words rang in Rai's head as she sat leaning against a tree trunk. _'A wanderer is just another word for a nomad,'_ she thought, her gaze drifting over to Sati, the newest addition to her "group" of companions, though she was reluctant to call it that. But she brushed it aside. This was only a coincidence; it didn't mean the rest of that woman's predictions would come true. "A hero in blue and enemies new and old, familiar..." She wasn't sure who rest would be, but there was no doubting who the "old, familiar" enemy she sought was. Before she could think on it any longer, she was pulled from her thoughts by Sati, who hovered over her with her big blue eyes. "What?" she asked.

"Good morning! You know, if you keep scowling like that, your face will get stuck!" she giggled.

"That's just something parents tell their children so they don't make stupid faces," Rai replied. "What do you want?"

"Well, I think right now is a great time to start your training! Now get up off your feet you lazy bum!" Rai sighed and stood up, following the prancing and skipping Sati into the open field. "Ok, show me what you know." Rai said nothing as she demonstrated a few techniques she knew, simple air blasts, a vertical and horizontal swipe and even an air shield. "Not bad!" Sati exclaimed, clapping. "Are you sure you haven't had any formal training! You're a natural!"

"Just get on with the lesson. Unlike some other students of yours, I don't respond well to such positive reinforcement."

"Before we do that, let me first explain the roots of airbending. Air is the element of freedom. It is not direct like earth or fire. The focus is mobility, eluding and evading danger and enemies rather than confronting them directly. It is the element of peace and pacifism, not rage and aggression. Your earthbending and firebending are superb; they compliment your direct approach and your intensity. But with airbending, you need to learn to be light on your feet, learn to be as free as the wind. So, our first exercise will be… skipping!"

"Skipping?" Rai asked in disbelief.

"Skipping!"

"You cannot be serious."

"I'm completely serious! I've always found that skipping is a fun and easy way to get that light and free feeling! When you're skipping, preferably in a big field of grass and flowers, all your troubles just disappear and you feel so serene," Sati explained with a wide smile. "Now come on, follow my lead!" Rai grumbled under her breath as she followed after the prancing Sati. Rai however, did not mimic her movements, instead walking stiffly behind her with her arms crossed defiantly. "Rai…" Sati started in a disappointed tone.

"I don't frolic. Next lesson," she called.

"Ok, well, usually one of the first things we do with beginners is the air gates. It's the first thing Avatar Korra learned. They're these spinning wood panels that students have to pass through perfectly without touching a single panel. But those are only at the Air Temples and my hunch tells me you're not willing to go to one, are you?" Rai shook her head. "Well, we'll improvise! Follow my lead!" Sati raised her arms in a ready position and stepped forward, taking quick and light steps, twisting and turning as if to avoid an invisible strike "Do exactly what I did!" she declared, standing on the opposite end of the clearing.

Rai said nothing as she took a similar position that Sati had and copied her movements.

"No, no, no," Sati said.

"What? I did what you did," Rai remarked.

"You think you did. Yes, you performed the same routine down the line as I did, but it wasn't correct. Your steps are far too heavy and your body is too stiff and rigid. You need to loosen up and take quicker and lighter steps, like you're not even leaving a footprint on the ground. Again!" Rai growled under her breath, but complied with her teacher, repeating the sequence a second time.

"Well?"

"No, still wrong," Sati said.

"I took lighter steps," Rai argued.

"Yes, you did, but you sped through the whole thing. That's not the same as taking lighter steps. Again!" This continued for nearly two hours and each time, Rai failed to complete the sequence of moves to Sati's standards. "Ok, stop, this isn't working. You're not light, you need to feel light!"

"Well, I don't feel light, all right?" Rai snapped.

"Ok, I have another idea. How about a game of tag, Takumi?" Sati called over to Takumi, who had been practicing his archery.

"Uh, what?" he asked.

"You're not serious, right?" Rai asked next.

"Oh, I totally am. So what do you say?" Sati asked with a smile.

"Sure?" he shrugged, uncertain. "Who's it?"

"You are, and will be until you tag us," Sati explained.

"Us?!" Rai exclaimed.

"But what if I hit you?" Takumi asked in worry.

"No problem." Sati took out a small pouch and filled it with dirt before securing it over the arrowhead. "There," she patted it to ensure a soft impact, "now it won't hurt even if you do manage to hit one of us! And just so it's fair, we'll only dodge and use airbending to deflect your shots."

"Just to clarify, you want me to shoot you?" he asked.

"Not just me, silly," she giggled before turning to Rai and smirking.

"You're not-"

"Yes I am!" Sati interjected. "One, two, three go!" she shouted, jumping into the trees with a gust of wind. "Don't forget, Rai, airbending only!" Rai muttered something inaudible under her breath before following Sati into the trees to avoid Takumi's arrows. "Remember! Light on your feet!" Rai pushed Sati's voice out of her head as she leapt from tree to tree, the branches creaking at the weight of her steps while Sati's steps we so light that they barely made a sound. Despite her attempts to evade Takumi's arrows, one of them struck her on her leg, causing her to lose balance mid-air and fall to the ground. Luckily, she was able to cushion her fall with her airbending.

"Now you're it, Rai!" Sati called.

"What's the point of this exercise? It's just a stupid children's game!" Rai shouted, angrily kicking the dirt.

"And you'd better run fast to catch us!" Sati laughed playfully.

"This is stupid. I'm not going to entertain this!" she declared, crossing her arms defiantly.

"Really? Because I'm actually surprised that Takumi was able to tag you," Sati pointed out.

"Obviously he was a better shot than I gave him credit for."

"Or he's getting better," the Nomad added.

Rai just gave her a deadbeat stare, showing her stubborn resolve, causing Sati to lose a bit of her smile. "Look, I know this isn't what you're used to. But training doesn't always have to be serious. So just relax and have some fun. Because everything in life is a lesson. You just have to have an eye for it."

"I don't do fun," Rai said with a serious glare.

"Why not?"

"You wouldn't understand," she said, simply turning away and leaving the area.

"Your friend needs to learn how to smile. You've known her longer than me. Why is she so… that?" Sati asked.

"Honestly, I don't know," Takumi replied. "She won't tell me either. Let me talk to her." Takumi set down his bow and followed after Rai, who had taken a seat on a large rock by a small stream of water. "Rai? Everything okay?"

"I'm fine," she answered gruffly, staring out at the water and not making eye contact with Takumi..

Takumi sighed and sat down beside her. "It's obviously not. What's bothering you? Is it Sati?"

"I don't like her."

"Really? What's not to like? She's friendly, understanding, funny, pretty...uh, good at teaching," he said, quickly catching himself as a red blush creeped onto his face.

"More like annoying and doesn't know when to butt out and be quiet."

"But she's so willing to help you. Why do you keep pushing her away? Call me crazy, but I think she just wants to be your friend."

"That's funny because I don't recall saying that I wanted her to be my friend."

Takumi looked at her bewildered. "You didn't say that about me either."

"I'm just taking you to your family. That's it. If you start to look at this as anything more than that, then that's your deal," she replied.

Takumi sat in silence for a moment, but Rai looked at him just in time to catch the glare that had suddenly formed across his face. She raised her eyebrow in confusion, having never seen such an expression more akin to hers on his face. "Is that all I am? An inconvenience? Because I don't buy that for one second, Rai. If I were, then why bother following me to Meilin's?" he asked, standing up over her as his voice grew louder with each question.

Rai finally turned and faced Takumi. "I promised you that I'd take you to your family in the Fire Nation capital and I can't do that if you keep getting yourself into situations where you might get killed!" she argued firmly.

"Really? Because it seems like if I were out of the way, you wouldn't have that obligation anymore. But if you insist on keeping us at arm's length…"

"What were you hoping for exactly?" she asked, standing up as well and looking down to him. "Because if you were hoping to learn everything about me and that some meaningful bond would be forged between us, then you're in for disappointment. Don't get me wrong, I will protect you from any danger until we reach our destination. But this is a temporary situation; soon enough, we'll both be out of each other's lives."

"Well, fine. I," he sighed, unable to deal further with Rai's attitude. "I'm gonna turn in for the night. Maybe a good rest will do us all a favor." He uttered those last few words with a bitter undertone and left Rai with the isolation she seemed to prefer over his company.

Rai looked down at the stream in front of her, eyes locked with her own reflection. Whenever she closed her eyes, it felt like she was back there, in that place, and it was only when she opened her eyes when she knew that she wasn't back there anymore. She traced the scar over her eye and sadly whispered to herself, "They could never understand. It's better that way."

* * *

The next morning, the trio remained silent in each other's presence, creating an awkward atmosphere. Sati and Takumi exchanged looks while glancing at Rai, who did not acknowledge either of them with so much as a single look and instead moved away to practice some of her bending in private.

"Still upset?" Sati asked, noticing the uncharacteristic dark cloud over Takumi.

"She made how she feels about us very clear," he muttered.

"Well, I think we should give her her space. I did test her patience a fair deal yesterday."

"But she doesn't have to lash out at us like that!"

"...I didn't want to say anything at first, since I am the newcomer here, but I think you're too hard on her."

"I'm too hard on her? She keeps herself so bottled up and doesn't tell me anything! Aside from being the you-know-what, I know next to nothing about her!"

"And perhaps there's a reason for that. The Air Nomads teach us peace and harmony, they teach us to be understanding to all people and their plights. As an Air Nomad it is my duty to help those in need, but we cannot help those who do not wish to be helped," she explained, glancing over at Rai, who had been mixing airbending in with her fast and aggressive fighting style. "Our pasts are our own and it is our choice how much and when to share those details with others. But Rai obviously cares about you. All those times that you told me about where she rescued you from danger? She wouldn't have done that if she didn't care about you."

Takumi counted all the instances Rai had saved him and he suddenly felt sheepish for having gotten mad at her. "I guess…"

"You can't control how other people will act, Takumi; you can only control how you act."

With Sati's words in mind, Takumi sat up and made his way over to Rai as she finished another practice sequence. "Umm, Rai?"

"What," she muttered rather than asked.

"About yesterday," he started, hesitating to speak while also waiting to see if she would say something. When she remained silent, he nervously scratched the back of his head and continued, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean what I said. I was just...angry."

"What changed your mind?" she asked, turning around to face him.

"Time, I guess. I know that I can't possibly begin to even imagine what it is that made you… this way," gesturing to her with his hands as he spoke, "but I hope that you come to trust me enough to tell me one day."

"Time doesn't heal everything, Takumi."

"I'm truly sorry that you feel that way. One thing my mom made me promise was to not dwell on the past. If you do, it'll destroy you from the inside. After what happened yesterday, I understand what she meant."

"Well, the sad truth is we all don't get to live in a happy sunshine and rainbows world where the only bad things to dwell on are arguments. This is how my life ended up and I can't change that. You were lucky to have someone like her as a mother for as long as you did... Cherish that."

"I still do," he replied with a smile, "but now I'd like to think I have something else to cherish; someone who I consider a friend."

He just stared off into space, but still earned an inquisitive look from Rai. "You still consider me that?" she asked, curious.

Takumi looked at her and smiled, then proceeded to chuckle briefly before turning his attention to Haku, who came up towards them. "No, I'm talking about Haku here. At least when he insults me, I can't understand the big guy," he chuckled, patting Haku on his lowered head. "He could absolutely adore me for all I know."

Rai couldn't help but let out a chuckle and crack a smile, which didn't go unnoticed by Takumi. "Hey, look! A smile AND a laugh," he exclaimed, before quickly lowering his voice into a whisper, "Don't tell Sati, or you'll never hear the end of it."

"Hear the end of what?" The pair looked up to see Sati hanging up in a tree by her legs, looking down at the duo.

"Ah! Don't do that!" Rai exclaimed, clutching her chest.

"How long have you been up there?" Takumi asked meekly.

"Oh, you know. Long enough," she responded with a smile. "Like I said: 'hear the end of what?'" Rai firebent at the branch Sati was hanging off, splitting it from the tree. However, Sati just flipped in mid air and landed softly on her feet, squatting down in a pose. She then looked up at the tree with a look of genuine amazement on her face. "Wow, that was so cool. A precise hit without setting the tree ablaze. You might have been able to show the ancient Fire Lords a trick or two."

"Was there a reason you were eavesdropping on us?" Rai asked, returning to her serious demeanor.

"I actually wanted to talk to you next, but I didn't want to interrupt your conversation, so I was going to politely wait until you were both finished. That is, until you mentioned me, so I decided to join in."

"I'll have to put a bell on you," Rai muttered.

"Oh, that'd just make my airbending all the more extravagant!" Sati exclaimed with a smile.

"Ugh," Rai rolled her eyes. "What did you want to talk about?"

"Well, I was just watching your practice just now and it reminded me of something"

"And that is?"

"When Tenzin began teaching the new Air Nomads, the traditional style in which he taught his own children wasn't working. So, he learned that he couldn't just use one teaching style for all his students. A good teacher knows that each student is different and that they must modify their program and style to best suit the student's needs and how the student can best learn. So…" With that, Sati suddenly stepped forward, blasting Rai with a powerful gust of air, which she just managed to deflect by disrupting the air with a blast of her own though the force of Sati's attack was strong enough to push her back a few feet.

"What are you doing?" Rai shouted, taking a battle stance.

"Teaching you airbending, the best way you can learn," Sati smiled confidently, taking her own battle stance in response. Rai smirked in response as the student and teacher began their lesson.

* * *

 **Next chapter: The lines between right and wrong become blurred when Rai deals with a slaver from her past in a grim manner, prompting a visit from a former self.**


	8. Black and White

"I thought you Air Nomads were all vegetarians," Rai commented as Sati browsed the selections of meat in the market of yet another town they stopped in.

"They're not as strict with it now as they used to be. It's a lifestyle choice," Sati smiled.

"Did you find everything all right?" the woman at the register asked.

Rai's eyes suddenly flew open wide as she snapped her head over to the woman who spoke while she rang up the contents of Sati's grocery basket. The woman had dark hair pulled back into a low and loose ponytail and kind, olive green eyes. Her breathing suddenly became laboured as sweat slowly dripped down her forehead as the memories flooded her mind in a relentless assault. Fire… blood… so many bodies as figures forcibly took her and the other screaming children away. Among them, a woman with dark hair and cruel, malicious olive green eyes. Rai was ready to jump forward and metalbend her bracer armor into sharp blades, but stopped when she felt Takumi gently touch her arm.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he asked in concern.

Rai suddenly remembered where she was and relaxed, but kept her eyes locked on the cashier. "Nothing. I'm fine," she said, turning to leave.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

"Bathroom. I'll catch up with you two later," she said. Instead of searching for a bathroom like she said she would, she ducked into a nearby alleyway and stayed there until she saw Sati and Takumi continuing down the street. She made her way through to the other end into the back alley behind the shops. She saw the woman emerge from the back of the store to throw away a bag of trash. While she was distracted, Rai quickly made her way up to the woman from behind and forcibly whipped her around and pushed her into the wall.

"Wha- Please don't hurt me! I don't have a lot of money but take whatever you want, just don't hurt me!" the woman begged as she cowered under Rai's firm grip.

She could hardly believe that this woman cowering in fear below her was the same from many years ago, but Rai maintained her resolve. "I never thought I'd see a slaver begging for her life in such a pathetic way," Rai muttered darkly.

"S-slaver? I-I don't know what you're talking about!" she protested.

"You can lie to these people all you want, but I remember you, Kiyoko."

"H-how did you know my name?" she gasped, eyes wide in fright.

"I never forget a face or a name, especially of someone who helped burn my home to the ground and kill my parents."

"Y-you mean… y-you," she stammered frightfully. "Oh, spirits. Please, I've changed! I don't do that anymore!"

Rai gripped the collar of Kiyoko's shirt as she began speaking in an angry, yet quiet tone so as not to draw attention. "And that's supposed to make it better? How many people did you kill? How many children's lives did you ruin before you got to me? How many since?"

"I know what I did was a terrible thing and I have to live with that every day of my life. I regret so much what I did. Please, show me mercy," she begged.

"Mercy?" Rai exclaimed, shocked that this woman was actually pleading for mercy especially after acknowledging what she had done, "I'll show you the same that you showed my village." Rai removed one hand from Kiyoko's collar to metalbend the plates on her bracers into a sharp blade that extended over her hand.

"Rai!" Rai and Kiyoko turned their heads as Takumi and Sati entered the back alley. "What are you doing?" Takumi tried pulling Rai's arm away from Kiyoko, but she was far stronger than he.

"Please, help me! She's crazy!" Kiyoko pleaded with tearful eyes.

"Go back to the hotel!" Rai barked angrily, turning her attention back to Kiyoko. However, a gust of wind suddenly blew right between the two, pushing Rai away from Kiyoko. Rai quickly got back up on her feet to advance on Kiyoko once more, but was stopped by Sati and Takumi standing in her way.

"Rai, were you going to… kill her?" Takumi gulped as he asked. Rai didn't answer, but Takumi and Sati could tell that that was confirmation enough. "Why?"

"Why? Because she's a despicable monster that needs to be put down!"

"What are you talking about? She was so nice in the store. What could she have possibly done?" Sati asked.

"She is a slaver. I'd recognize her face anywhere," Rai spat.

"How would you know that? You can't just go around accusing people like that. Even if she was, she might not be anymore! What if she's a better person now? People can change, Rai," Takumi argued.

"And that excuses all the crimes she's committed? Yes, people can change, Takumi. Believe it or not but I wasn't always like this; I used to be happy, I used to have a good life! But then people like her ruined everything. People like her destroyed my life!"

"It's true!" Kiyoko cried. "I was a slaver, but I don't run with them anymore! I haven't been in contact with them for years! I've turned my life around, honest! I swear, I don't do that anymore! I'm not that person anymore!"

"You're lying!" Rai shouted, ready to strike with her blades, but once again, Sati and Takumi blocked her path, giving Kiyoko the chance to slip away as the group argued. "Get out of my way!" she yelled, eager to pursue the ex-slaver.

"No! It's not right. You can't just go around playing judge, jury and executioner!" Sati protested.

"So you would have them go unpunished for all the crimes they committed?"

"The Avatar isn't a killer, Rai," Sati said.

"Then it's a good thing that I'm not your Avatar," Rai whispered back. "And you know as well as I do that I wouldn't be the first one to take a life."

"But it's not right!" Takumi added. "Killing doesn't make anything better! It won't undo what was done. Two wrongs don't make a right."

"Right? You really want to talk to me about what's right? What isn't right is for slavers like her to go from town to town killing people and stealing children to sell as slaves! I should have figured neither of you two could possibly understand," Rai scoffed, walking away from the pair. She kept her distance from the two for the next two days while she carefully monitored Kiyoko, only loosely entertaining Takumi and Sati's idea that she had changed. But no matter what, all Rai could see when she looked at this woman who appeared kind and generous was a malicious and cruel killer. On the night of the third day, Rai watched as Kiyoko left her apartment complex with a large crate of produce. Instead of going to the market, she made her way towards the outskirts of town. Rai crept behind her closely, but made sure not to get too close that Kiyoko would notice her presence. She stopped and hid behind a tree as Kiyoko met with a man in light armor with a familiar emblem of a sword and chain on his shoulder armor.

"Here, this is the last shipment I can give you, but it should last until your next stop," Kiyoko said, handing the man the crate.

"Last shipment? Where am I supposed to get food for my men and my… shipment now?" he asked. The rest of the exchange between them as quick and quiet as Rai watched from afar. So much for turning over a new leaf…

Once the man disappeared and Kiyoko began making her way away from the town, Rai crept up behind her. "Once a slaver, always a slaver," she said.

Kiyoko gasped and turned around, her eyes widening in terror as she saw Rai. "I-It's you..."

"I should have known a snake like you would never change," she muttered grimly as she advanced on Kiyoko.

"W-w-wait! I know what this looks like, but please listen to me!" Kiyoko begged, paralyzed in fear and unable to move.

"Oh, I listened and I gave you the chance you so desperately begged for, but you're just like all the rest. You lie, you cheat and you say whatever it is you need to say to save your slimy skin," Rai said, whipping out the metal blades from her forearm bracers.

"Okay! I lied about my connection to them. But please! I have no other means of eating. I don't deal in people anymore! Just goods, produce. I can't be picky with who I sell to. I've changed; I'm a better person now! Please, you have to understand!" she begged.

"Understand? You want me to understand? You have no right to ask me to understand your plight! You think changing is going to magically erase everything you did? You can try and bury your past as much as you want, change your name, change your everything, but that doesn't make it better for all the people you screwed over! I'm going to do what I should have done the moment I saw you." She dashed forward and stabbed both blades into Kiyoko's abdomen, glaring into her eyes with rage and hatred as blood oozed through the fabric of Kiyoko's clothes and onto Rai's fingers.

Kiyoko's breath hitched as the blades penetrated her body. Blood filled her mouth as she coughed, barely choking out her last words, "P-p-pl-please...I didn't…" Kiyoko's body fell limp and fell to the ground off Rai's blades with a swift push.

* * *

"Oh, Rai! There you are. Where have you been?" he asked in worry as Rai entered the hotel room that the three were sharing. Rai, however, did not respond. "Rai? Are you okay?" he asked, but then he noticed the crimson stains on her hands. "Rai? What is that? Please tell me that's just red paint," he asked in a worried tone. Rai said nothing and stopped, looking up at him with her usual stern expression, but something about her eyes felt dead and empty. "That's not your blood, is it?"

"Do I look injured?" she retorted.

Takumi backed away from her and began pacing across the room, running his hands through his hair nervously. He finally turned to face her, barely holding in his feelings. "I-I should...I have a mind to report this, you, to the authorities. Please, help me understand why," he begged.

"As I said many times before, you could never understand," she said, moving to the bathroom to wash the blood off her hands. "But if you're so desperate to understand, just know that I've dealt with another piece of filth. If you want to report me to the authorities, go ahead. I'll be long gone before they even know I was here. Not only that but you'll lose your escort AND the only thing that's been keeping you alive and safe from the assassins your father's been sending. So, any other questions?"

Takumi stood there in shocked silence. "I...I thought you were better than this. Or at least getting better. What about the slaver you rescued me from? You spared him!"

"Only because you insisted on getting in my way. And like I told you then, you should have let me kill him," Rai sighed. "I envy you, Takumi. I envy the happy world you grew up in with no troubles; I envy your blissful ignorance and naivety. As much as people like you and little Miss Sunshine want to think, the world isn't made of rainbows and butterflies. Just because you're nice to everyone doesn't mean everyone you meet will show you the same courtesy. Some people just want to hurt others, some people just want to watch the world burn, some people are just pure evil; they lie, steal and cheat no matter how much they screw over the people who get hurt in the process! You always said to me that I should use my powers and skills to help people, right? Well, there's lots of ways to help people: healing the sick, defending the weak, and executing dangerous criminals. Either way helps."

"Seems you prefer the last of those options, don't you?" he remarked.

"It's the only one that works for me. Do you honestly think you'd be able to sway the morality of every criminal you met? Somehow convince them of the error of their ways and turn their lives around?" she asked, washing her face in the sink. "It doesn't matter anymore. She doesn't deserve to be remembered, not after what she did. I suppose you're going to ask me if I feel better after what I've done?"

"Do you?" he asked.

"It doesn't matter what I feel," Rai said, focusing on her reflection in the bathroom mirror. Her expression was so blank, so devoid of emotion, so hollow inside. "This was never about making me feel better. What matters is what's right and stopping these people from doing what they do to other innocent victims and getting justice for those they've already wronged."

"Well then what's the end result for you once the slavers are gone?"

"I don't know. It'll be a long time before I cross off all the names on my list. I may not even be able to get rid of all of them, but I'll take as many of them out as I can."

"Wait? You have a list?" he asked.

Sati entered the bathroom, drawn by the commotion. "List? List of what?" she asked before gasping in shock at the sight of the blood in the sink. "Oh my goodness, what happened?"

Rai ignored Sati's worry and pulled out a small book from her pocket and tossed it to Takumi. "A list of people who have what's coming to them." Sati hovered over Takumi's shoulder as he opened the book, revealing a list of names on each page, some of which were already crossed out. "This person wasn't the first and they'll hardly be the last."

"You're just gonna kill all these people?" Sati asked.

"Some of them will be lucky; they'll be getting quick deaths."

"That's cold," Sati replied, her usual cheerful expression instead replaced with one of shock and horror..

"It's also generous, more generous than they deserve."

"Rai, killing is never the answer. If you kill a killer, the number of murderers in this world stays the same," Takumi reasoned, trying to appeal to her.

"I know, that's why I don't stop at one. Would you rather I leave this to the authorities? The same authorities that are either ignorant to these crimes or corrupt and turn a blind eye? Someone has to get justice for all the lives these people destroyed. An eye for an eye; a life for a life."

"But that's so… how can you sleep at night?" Sati asked, horrified.

"I don't. Agree or disagree, I do what I have to do to survive and I do what I have to do to get justice." Rai took one last look at herself in the mirror before wiping her face with a towel and pushing her way past her silent and shocked companions. "I'm going to bed."

Rai couldn't fall asleep that night, but it was different than every time before. She felt troubled and conflicted and she just couldn't get comfortable in the bed. Was she feeling guilty? ' _Ridiculous,_ ' she thought. She had taken lives before and she hadn't felt guilty then. Unable to sleep, she sat up in her bed and looked over to see Takumi and Sati sound asleep. They looked so peaceful and it reminds her of better times. She couldn't help but smile and be a little bit envious at how peacefully they could sleep. Between the nightmares and always being ready for an ambush, she hadn't slept soundly for years. She lay back down onto the bed and shut her eyes, trying to get to sleep as she shifted onto her side, her back facing Takumi's bed in the middle. All of a sudden, she heard a whisper, a voice speaking so quietly that she almost didn't notice it.

"Avatar Rai," the voice spoke.

"I told you never to call me tha-" she began, preparing to scold Sati, but quickly noticed the Nomad girl was sound asleep. "Huh? Who's there?" she called, standing up in a combat stance. However, she looked down at her arms, noticing that her entire was a ghostly blue and transparent. Below her, she could see her own body unconscious on the bed.

"They can't hear us." All of a sudden, in a small flash of light, an elderly woman with silver hair and tan skin dressed in blue winter attire appeared in front of Rai. "Hello, Avatar Rai. I am Avatar Korra."

Rai narrowed her eyes at the sight of the old woman. "You... Heh, I was wondering how long it would take you to show up," she said, crossing her arms.

"Oh, I can't take all the credit," chuckled Korra with a smile, "You made a considerable effort to keep me at bay. But how can I refuse when I am called by my kin?"

"I never called you and we are not kin!" she shouted.

"You did not call me of your own accord. But your soul was screaming as you slept. And I know why."

"Don't try to make me feel bad for what I did, because I don't! She got what she deserved," Rai said, unwavering.

"And yet this is the first time you have contacted me. You've killed people before, but I remained at bay even then. Something has changed. Deep down, you do feel guilty. You've spent so long disconnecting yourself from everyone else and everything around you but for the first time in so long, you have people to connect with, people you are concerned about and people who are concerned about you."

Rai smirked, "Heh, I get how this is supposed to go. You tell me how guilty I feel to try and make me feel guilty. Well I don't! And don't give me the crap about how going through with this won't make me feel any better in the end. I KNOW THAT!" she suddenly yelled loudly. "It'll never make it better; I'll never feel better! But it's not about me!"

"Then who is it about?" she asked.

"It's about Kala and Arata, and every single child whose lives they destroyed! How many people have they killed? How many children ripped from their homes and sold like property? Would you just stand by and let these people go unpunished for their crimes?"

"And what happens when you're the destroyer?"

"What would you have me do? Go around preaching peace and harmony like your predecessor and his flock of sheep? Well, that doesn't always work! I seem to recall you being a punch first and ask questions later kind of Avatar. The past doesn't just conveniently go away when we want it to. You might as well save it because your preaching isn't going to work on me," Rai said, holding up her hand to silence Korra. "They'll pay for what they did to me, to all of us."

"You could have turned Kiyoko into the authorities. She would have answered for her crimes," Korra reasoned.

"Oh, you're such a hypocrite!" Rai snapped. "How many times did you operate outside the law to get justice, to do what was right? How many rules did you break to do what you knew in your heart was the right thing? And what about your fight with the Red Lotus? You had every intention of killing Zaheer because you thought he killed your father. How is this any different? The law doesn't always help those who are really in need nor does it ensure that true justice is carried out. I can't rely on the justice system because they never knew what happened to me and all those children! All it and the law does is protect those in power who implemented them in the first place. So don't you dare try to lecture me about what's right!" Rai shouted, pointing her finger at Korra in accusation. "You know what? I think I'd prefer to talk to an Avatar who might actually understand me. How about Avatar Wan? Oh, that's right. I'm stuck with you," she said venomously. "Hundreds and hundreds of Avatars before me that I could turn to for help if I wanted, but the only one I can talk to is you."

"I know I can't even begin to pretend that I know what you've gone through. But taking the law into your own hands like this will only poison yourself. Every time you take a life, you're killing part of yourself. That is no way to live."

"What does it matter? I already feel dead inside; I have for years. I lost my home, my family, my brother… everything. There's only so much a person can take before the hope is kicked out of them," she muttered. "Once this is over, I'll be more than happy to let someone else take over as Avatar. Then you and the White Lotus can lecture him or her all about how bad of an Avatar I was."

"You're not a bad Avatar, Rai; you're just lost. We all lose our path sometimes, but that doesn't mean we're lost forever. Sometimes we just need help finding our way again. Trust me on that. Even if you don't care to admit it, you haven't felt more alive in years and it's all because of them. My friends stood by me even when I wanted to push them away, when I felt they couldn't understand what I was feeling and what I was going through. Don't push away those that care about you, Rai."

"Why not? It's only a matter of time before they leave me anyway. Takumi thinks of me as some sort of virtuous paragon and Sati looks at me like I'm the next great Avatar. Both of them are looking for something that just isn't there! Once they finally realize what I really am and that I'll never be what they see in me, they'll leave me of their own accord," Rai muttered, the stern expression on her face masking a sad look in her eyes.

"Or perhaps, they are looking to bring out something in you that you didn't know you had."

The image of Korra disappeared as Rai returned to her body. She opened her eyes and was about to wake up, but heard Takumi shuffle around in his bed and sit up. She stayed still as he began speaking. "I wish I could understand you. I wish you'd let me understand you! But you never let me. You won't tell me anything else about you," he whispered sadly, wiping away a tear, "Maybe you were right, maybe she did deserve it, but… but you don't have to resort to that! You don't have to be as bad as them. I-I looked up to you, like the big sister I never had. You might expect me to give up on you after tonight. I know you're going to tell me that I'm seeing something in you that just isn't there. But I won't give up. I know there is good in you somewhere deep down," he sniffled and scoffed, "Listen to yourself, Takumi, talking to a sleeping girl. Practically talking to yourself. Maybe I'm going as crazy as she is."

"You're not crazy. Misguided, perhaps, but not crazy," Rai said, sitting up.

Takumi almost jumped when he heard her voice. "Umm, how long were you awake?" he asked nervously.

"I heard everything," she replied, turning around and sitting on the edge of her bed to face Takumi as he sat on his.

Takumi scratched the back of his head nervously. "I'm sorry for what I said to you. I know that it wasn't my business, but-"

"You don't have to be sorry, Takumi. It's so much easier to see the world in black and white. Gray... I don't know what to do with gray. Since you look up to me so much, I'll give you some advice." She gave Takumi a serious look before speaking, "Don't be like me."

To her surprise, Takumi leapt off his bed and reached out towards her, embracing her tightly. Rai was shocked by the hug and sat there unsure of how to respond to this before gently reciprocating and patting his back. "There's a good person in you, Rai. And one day, we'll find her and bring her out. Call me naïve, if you want, but I don't give up on my friends."

* * *

 **Ah, it finally happened. Rai talked to Korra. Obviously, their first talk wouldn't go too well. But I knew from the start that at some point, Rai would have to talk to Korra and you can rest assured that this won't be the last time.**

 **Hop on over to this chapter on my deviantart for my lazy quickie sketch of an elderly Korra.**

 **You may recognize a quote I adapted for this story. Garrus Vakarian's "black and white" quote, some of my favorites :3**

 **Next chapter: Sati is attacked by an agent of Goro's, who leaves Rai with a grim message from her former master.**


	9. The Slow Knife

**Long weekend! Woo!**

* * *

"What is that?" Rai asked, gesturing to the large basket of vegetables in Sati's arms as she caught up to her and Takumi strolling through another town they had arrived in.

"This is our dinner tonight!" Sati replied with a smile before confidently adding, "I make a mean vegetable stew."

Unbeknownst to the three as they continued through the market, a shadowy, hooded figure watched them from a distance in a dark alleyway. Rai couldn't shake the feeling of lingering eyes on her and sharply turned around. However, she saw nothing suspicious aside from people minding their own business on the street.

Takumi noticed Rai stop and look around. "Hey, what's wrong?" he asked in concern.

Rai stood silently for a moment still looking around for something out of place, but she couldn't spot anything. "It's nothing," she said, continuing after Sati as Takumi followed behind her. They returned to their campsite where Sati made the vegetable stew she had been boasting about all day.

"So, what did you guys think of my stew?" Sati asked, eagerly looking for their feedback.

"It was great! Really warm too!" Takumi complimented.

"Rai? What did you think of it?" the airbender asked the silent Avatar.

"It was fine," she replied simply.

"Oh, the fire's going down. I'll get some more firewood! Wouldn't want that soup to get cold!" Sati exclaimed, sitting up and heading into the woods with her lantern.

"You want another bowl, Rai?" Takumi asked, holding his hand out to for her bowl. She said nothing as she placed her empty bowl in his extended hand. While Takumi scooped up more stew into their bowls, Rai's gaze drifted to their surrounding as if she was looking for something. "You've been out of it all day, Rai. What's wrong?" he asked, handing her back her bowl, now filled with steaming hot stew, as he sat down next to her.

"Something just feels… off, like someone's been watching us all day. Maybe I'm just imagining things," she said, shaking her head and brushing the issue off.

"I think you're too paranoid sometimes, Rai. You're not always being stalked and not everyone's out to get you." All of a sudden, the pair heard a loud scream echoing through the night. The animals perked their heads up in response as Takumi dropped his bowl in shock. "Hey, that's Sati!" Takumi sprang up and took off in the direction of the scream.

Rai held her hand out, signaling for Haku and the other animals to remain at camp while they investigated before following after Takumi. "Ugh, I really need to stop picking up strays…"

Rai trailed behind Takumi, who had since gotten a huge lead ahead of her. When she finally caught eye of him, she saw Takumi cradling Sati in his arms. Her entire body shook while her eyes were wide and unfocused like they struggled to focus in on what was in front of her. Her breathing was fast and uneven as if the air was sucked straight from her lungs. Takumi tried his best to help calm her down, but was having little success. "Sati?! Sati! It's okay, we're here. What's wrong?" He turns to Rai with desperate eyes. "Rai? Do something!"

"What happened?" she asked, kneeling down next to them.

Sati barely seemed to notice her presence, but managed to speak a bit in a weak whisper. "I… I thought h-he was hurt, b-but he did something to me…"

"What did they look like?" Rai asked.

"N-n-not they...just one. Tall...eyes...those eyes...like spears," she whispered frightfully.

Takumi hugged her in an effort to comfort the traumatized girl and gently shushed her, whispering that she would be all right. The sight of this girl, who was so usually chipper and upbeat, in such a state was unsettling to them both.

"This doesn't make any sense. If they were bandits or highwaymen, they would have attacked us at camp…" Rai thought out loud.

"H-He said you...would come f-find me," Sati whispered.

"What? Who?"

"He didn't say his name… Went that way," she exhaled roughly, barely managing to lift her hand and point towards a set of footprints leading further into the woods.

"Takumi, take care of her," Rai said, dashing off into the distance, following the footprints before Takumi could protest.

As she ran, Rai eventually spotted a glow in the distance directly ahead of her. She burst into a clearing, only to find one broad shouldered individual standing in front of a small camp fire with his back facing the flames. Though he was facing her directly, his features were obstructed by a dark hood. "Couldn't resist, could you?" the man taunted.

Upon hearing his voice, Rai's mind suddenly reeled from the memories that flooded her mind. Memories of that voice and what that voice's owner did to her. She took a deep breath and recomposed herself. "Enough games. You work for him, don't you?" she asked firmly.

The man laughed, which only made the unsettling pit in her stomach grow more uncomfortable. "You were always very perceptive, even back then," he said, removing his hood and discarding the cloak, revealing a large, well-built man with long brown hair. The man's face instantly brought back unpleasant memories as she felt the scar over her eyebrow suddenly burn faintly, but she closed her eyes and exhaled deeply, reminding herself that she wasn't there anymore.

"Manta…" she muttered, recognizing the man.

Noticing her displeased expression, he asked, "What's the matter? Disappointed?"

"I'll have Goro in my sights soon enough, but for now you'll have to do!" Rai's fists began flaming as she charged forward. Manta danced around Rai's brutish, rage-fueled attack and struck back with a quick water whip, hitting her right on her back, causing a sharp sting of pain. It instantly brought back so many memories or a whip striking her back, ever so slowly wearing away her skin, each strike as agonizing as the last.

"Temper, temper. I'd stay my hand if I were you," he teased.

"Shut up!" Rai shouted, slamming her fist into the ground, cracking the earth beneath him. But Manta easily jumped and created a slab of ice from the water in his waterskin for him to slide out of the fissure's way to solid ground. Once he was off the ice, he pulled it back into its water state and sent a wave of water at Rai, instantly freezing it solid as it struck her, completely encasing her within but leaving her head and hands exposed. Rai struggled to free herself as the cold began to numb her body.

Seeing her immobilized, the man marched over to her. "Tsk tsk tsk. How long since you've been in this position, hm? He's missed you a great deal, you know," Manta whispered sensually, though that only served to send an uncomfortable shiver down Rai's spine and make her sick to her stomach. "No matter how many he gets, none of the new girls can ever hold a candle to you, he says. They just break too easily."

"Frankly, I'm surprised he kept you around. He got so angry with you when you gave me this," she taunted back at him, gesturing to the scar on her face. "He almost killed you for ruining my pretty face."

Manta reacted in an instant, swiftly striking her across the face. Rai didn't even cry out in pain and simply took the hit unphased. "You still don't know when to hold your tongue."

"And I told you all that I will never be a slave."

"Heh, you can say it all you want, but that won't make it true. You've grown up a lot since I last saw you. A whole lot," he said, cocking his eyebrows as his gaze drifted down her body. "The blonde hair isn't bad. I like it, but I think Goro will prefer you with dark hair," he said, taking one of the long strands of hair that framed her face between his fingers and lightly sniffing it.

"How did you find me?"

"Oh, it wasn't easy, I'll tell you that much. You should be grateful. Goro made us all swear not to reveal that… important detail regarding you. You know, Avatar? The last thing he wanted was competition in tracking you down. Oh, but imagine the scandal if the world found out about you! The Avatar, a slave!" Manta howled in laughter. "Goro doesn't like to share and he certainly wouldn't want to share his property with the rest of the world. You were always his favorite and being the Avatar only makes him want you back more. But to answer your question: we heard a rumor. Turns out some big time politician in Republic City had been hiring mercenaries to take out some kid traveling with a girl. The first reports said the girl was an airbender, but imagine how strange it was to hear that the second report labeled her as an earthbender. At first we thought maybe it was just two different girls, but the descriptions we got back was the same: Earth Kingdom clothes, blonde hair, fought like a beast and had a scar over her left eye. Odd, right?" he asked, rhetorically.

"Where is Goro?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at him.

"Aw, what's the matter? Eager to reunite with your master?" he asked, taking a hold of her chin in his rough, calloused hand.

"He is not my master!"

"Heh, you'll be singing a different tune eventually. Goro will have you, but you see, he's not going to try and take you by force. That would be no fun. You're going to come crawling on your hands and knees begging for him to take you back."

"Like hell I will!"

"Oh, you will," he said, removing his hand from her chin. "It might not be now, it might not even be for a while, but it will happen. It is inevitable. He has made it his mission to destroy everything you hold dear - like those new friends of yours - and completely break your body and spirit so that you will have nothing left in this world except him. You know what they say: it's the slow knife, the knife that takes its time that cuts the deepest."

"I will not bend; I will not break!" she shouted, determined.

"You will. We don't have to hurt you to break you; we just have to hurt the ones you care about, like that little airbender. Now, who does she remind me of? Something about that bright and hopeful look in her eyes just feels so familiar. It's on the tip of my tongue… Oh, right! That one slave! What was her name? Kira? Kara?"

"Kala. Her name was Kala!" Rai muttered between her gritted teeth.

"Oh yes, Kala! If memory serves, you two were exceptionally close," he said with a grin.

"Then you must also remember what I did to the one who killed her," Rai replied.

"Avatar or not, the threats of a lowly slave don't scare me, little girl. You see, I'm not the same as the last time we saw each other. I'm a bloodbender now," he gloated. "I could make you do whatever I wanted. I could even take away all that precious power that makes you the Avatar, just like I did with the airbender and leave you utterly powerless. All it would take is one, precise touch," he said, hovering his index finger right over her forehead. Rai instinctively pulled her head back as much as she could, but the ice still encased her. Manta laughed at the sight of this before pulling his hand back. "Haha, but rest assured we won't kill the airbender girl or the boy. Death would only be a release from the hell they will endure because of you," he leaned in close whispered in her ear. Rai suddenly lunged forward and sunk her teeth into Manta's earlobe. The bandit cried out in pain as he stepped back and Rai tore off his earlobe with her teeth and spit the bit of flesh and blood onto the ground. He fell to the ground clutching his bleeding ear as Rai lit her hands aflame, melting the ice and finally breaking free before she marched over to him. She effortlessly lifted him onto his feet by the back collar of his shirt and held his neck between her arms, ready to snap it at any moment.

"You're right," she exhaled shakily with a slight chuckle. "Death would only be a release from the hell _I_ will inflict upon you!" she whispered into his bloody ear as he groaned in pain and struggled against her firm grip. Blood trickled down his neck while he tried to pulled her arms off from him, but to no avail. "But I'm not the same as the last time either and you have only managed to provoke this beast further. A good predator knows to let the small fry go and wait for the bigger prey to show itself. I could snap your neck right now and cross another name off my list, but I won't. I want you to remember this moment and remember that you were at my mercy, that your life was in my hands and that you only live because it is my will, my choosing, but only so you can pass on a message." Manta tried to speak, but Rai pulled her forearm against his throat, silencing him as he struggled to breath. "Ah ah ah, I'm not done talking. You will tell Goro that I will find him and that I will enjoy returning all the pain and suffering he's caused me ten fold until he begs me to kill him. Then, I'll pass along the same courtesy to the rest of his men, including you. You know what they say, it's the slow, patient knife that waits for years without ever forgetting, that slips right through the folds, right past every defense and cuts the deepest. I promise you that," she said firmly, repeating Manta's own words back at him before roughly releasing her hold on him as he scrambled to his feet and continued clutching his bleeding ear.

"You're gonna regret this, slave!" Manta spat before taking off into the woods. Rai watched him disappear as she fought the urge to pursue and kill him. Upon returning to camp, she saw Takumi sitting by the fire with Sati, who held a bowl of her stew in her hands and had a blanket draped over her shoulders. The pair looked uncharacteristically gloomy and somber as she approached.

"What happened?" Takumi asked, standing up as Rai approached.

"He got away," Rai quickly responded. "How is she?"

Sati looked up from her bowl with sad eyes and frowned, "Rai. I… I can't teach you anymore! I've lost my airbending. Whatever that creep did to me, it took my bending away."

"Your bending isn't gone, it's only suppressed," Rai explained.

"What do you mean?" Takumi asked.

"Do you remember Amon and the Equalists?" Rai asked.

"From the nonbender revolution decades ago? Yeah," he nodded. "But what does that have to do with this?"

"Amon claimed to have the power to remove a bender's bending ability, but all it was was just dressed up bloodbending, which he was able to use to block certain chi paths to suppress someone's bending ability."

"So I guess this is the part where you tell me to go? After all, I know you only tolerated me because I could train you in airbending," Sati muttered sadly.

"No," Rai replied.

"No?"

"The one who did this to you; he works for someone I know and he did it in an effort to hurt me. As of now, that makes restoring your bending my responsibility."

"So, this isn't permanent?"

"There's only two ways to reverse this kind of damage: bloodbending and energybending and I have no intention of of ever learning the former."

Sati looked up to the Avatar with her big blue eyes, reinvigorated with hope. "...Thank you, Rai. Thank you!"

"You can thank me when we fix the damage. Our trip to your family will have to wait, Takumi."

"No problem! I'm in!" Takumi beamed. "Just tell me what we have to do." To her surprise, Rai saw something in his eyes that she hadn't seen in a long time: grim determination in such a young soul that was so sure of confident and hopeful that he could achieve anything. It had been years since she last saw that look in someone's eyes.

"Well, think of it this way. Now I can divert all of my time to making you smile, Rai," smiled Sati, standing up.

"Well, you certainly bounce back," Rai remarked.

"And I'll bounce higher once I get my bending back. After all, knowing that you're on the case, I am SURE that I'll be able to bend again!"

"So, what's our first move?" Takumi asked.

"Well, our only lead aside from finding a bloodbender willing to undo the work - which will be hard enough as it is since bloodbending is illegal - is energy bending. And the last I heard, only lion turtles could teach it and the last one wasn't seen since the end of the 100 year war."

"Why not just ask the guy who did this to undo it? Seems like the most direct method," Sati suggested.

"Because the person who did this to you is a psychopathic monster! He did this to you to spite me!"

"But who is this person? Why are they doing this?" Takumi asked.

"They're someone from my past, that's all you need to know. I've been hunting him for a long time and now that I'm getting close, he's trying to derail me. So, which is more fruitless to search for? A lion turtle or a bloodbender willing to help us?"

Sati and Takumi stood in silence, unable to come up with an answer until the young nonbender spoke up. "I have an idea," he said quietly, raising his hand. "You remember when you rescued me from those slavers?" Rai nodded. "And you remember the one that I convinced you not to kill? He was a waterbender, wasn't he? Even if he doesn't know bloodbending, he might know someone who does."

"I doubt he'll still be there by the time we manage to backtrack to that village," Rai said, dismissing the idea. "But, it's the only lead we have right now. We should leave now before the trail goes cold."

* * *

 **Next chapter - Backtracking: With Sati's bending gone, the group's only lead is the waterbending slaver that Takumi convinced Rai to spare.**

 **At this point, I strongly urge readers to please offer any suggestions of scenarios for the group to encounter. There's only so much I can come up with and even my friend who's been helping with the story, Powershade117, has run out of ideas too. So if you've got an idea, please share it.**


	10. Backtracking

**Man, almost lost track of when I last updated XD**

 **Anyway, still looking for some scenario ideas, so if you have an idea, please share it with me!**

* * *

With Haku running at full speed and Sati's bison, Daisy, carrying her, Takumi and a very fidgety Kiwi, they were able to backtrack to the village where Rai and Takumi had left the waterbending slaver in the hands of the local authorities within just over a day. They didn't waste any time in approaching the local police station. "We're looking for one of your prisoners: a waterbending slaver that was brought in about a week ago," Rai said to the officer.

"I'm afraid we had to let that prisoner go," the officer replied.

"What? Why?" Takumi cried, in shock.

"Insufficient evidence," he said, shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly as if such a thing was a common occurrence. "Now, if there isn't anything else, I have to get back to work."

"Pfft, 'insufficient evidence'. Like I haven't heard that one before," Rai scoffed, rolling her eyes as she walked away with Takumi and Sati in tow. "So much for that lead."

"What do we do now?" Sati asked.

"I don't know," Rai said.

"There must be something we can do, some way to find him!" Takumi exclaimed.

"I don't know!" Rai shouted furiously, punching a nearby metal wall and leaving a noticeable dent.

"Rai?" Sati asked in concern.

"What?"

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"Is that a serious question? Of course I'm not okay! We came all this way searching for this good for nothing scum - our only lead - and for what? To end up right back where we started?"

"Rai, I appreciate all that you've done, but…"

"Don't start that, Sati," Rai silenced the airbender. "I gave my word, and I intend to keep it. Then you can continue teaching me airbending or do whatever you want. I just don't know where to look."

"How about a little to the left?" All three sharply turned their heads to see a man standing at the entrance of an alleyway staring at them.

"It's you!" Takumi exclaimed, quickly recognizing the slaver he had convinced Rai to spare.

"You! Do you have any idea how long we've been searching for you!" Rai stomped over to him angrily.

"Obviously not. I'm not omniscient," he remarked.

"Well, I see you haven't lost your charm," Takumi said.

"So he's the one we're looking for?" Sati asked.

"Hey toots, I'm standing right here," he said to Sati.

"Enough. You're a waterbender, right?" Rai asked.

"What? No 'hello'? No 'how're you doing'?"

Rai crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes, showing she wasn't in the mood for his games. "I prefer to get right down to business."

"All right, all right. You're no fun," he said, holding up his hands in defeat. "How can I turn away someone so pretty that went to such trouble to find me? What do you need?"

"My… associate here was attacked by a bloodbender. He stripped her of her airbending and we need to find a way to restore it," Rai explained.

"Well, I hate to disappoint you, but I ain't no bloodbender. So I can't help you there."

"Great…" Rai grumbled under her breath.

"But, I might have some information that could lead you to one. I mean, that is if you want to go with the bloodbender. I seem to recall energybending being an alternative solution and you know, legal. But you'd need to find the Avatar for that," he said, grinning at Rai as he spoke. "And nobody knows who he… or she is," he said with a wink. Rai narrowed her eyes and subtly whipped out her blades. He noticed this and quickly held up his hands. "Now, now, slow your roll. I've got nothing to gain by outing you. And even if I wanted to, I would have already done it."

"How did you find out?" Rai asked.

"Oh, I just put two and two together. Nah, I actually overheard you saying something about her teaching you airbending," he said, gesturing to Sati. "And I seem to recall you being an earthbender or was it someone else who trapped me in a pile of rocks and almost smashed open my head with a boulder? In the future, you might want to be more careful about what you say out loud. But rest assured, my lips are sealed. I know you women like your secrets."

"Like I'd trust you," Rai remarked.

"Oh, I don't think you have much of a choice. Now, either you can kill me and be back to square zero or do me a favour, let me live and maybe I can point you in a more fruitful direction. Now the question is: what do you have to offer?"

"What do you want," Rai said rather than asked.

He stood in silence, resting his chin in his hand as he pondered. "Hmm, that is a nice lizard you have there."

Haku snarled at the man as Rai quickly interjected. "No, he's not for bargaining."

"Relax, I was only admiring his anatomy. You don't see a lot of eel hounds, especially tamed ones. A beast as quick as this one or even that air bison should make an excellent escort to Shu Jing."

"Shu Jing? That's in the Fire Nation, isn't it?" Takumi asked.

"That's an odd request," Sati commented.

"Yes... why do you want an escort there?" Rai asked.

"I've got a contact with some information waiting for me, personal information," he emphasized. "And my old group isn't exactly happy with me being arrested so I need to lay low for a while. A small town like that is the perfect place to disappear. I would have just taken one of the ferries that cross the sea to the Fire Nation, but I might run into someone. Now do we have a deal or should I go back to my shadows?"

"An escort, that's all you want?" Rai asked. She couldn't believe that a simple escort was all this slaver wanted. There had to be some ulterior motive for it, something he wasn't sharing.

"Ah-ah, without any restraints. You don't need to tie me up to get my cooperation this time. You don't believe me, do you?"

"I have little reason to trust the word of a slaver," she remarked.

"Then good luck learning energybending to restore your friend's powers," he said, casually turning and walking away.

"Wait!" Takumi exclaimed, prompting the slaver to stop, though he did not turn around "We'll do it!"

Rai stepped back in shock at Takumi's sudden outburst, but quickly regained her composure and grabbed Takumi by his elbow. "We need to talk," she whispered. "Don't go anywhere," she said to the slaver as she pulled Takumi aside. "Why do you keep sticking your neck out for this guy?"

"This isn't about me, Rai, it's about Sati. And if taking this guy to Shu Jing will get us one step closer to finding a solution then I'm willing to take the risk. Besides, it is on the way to the Fire Nation Capital. And even if he does cause trouble, you'll be with us," he smiled confidently.

Rai grumbled under her breath and muttered, "And what if I'm not always around Takumi? I swear if I wasn't around to bail you out, you'd get yourself killed."

"Probably," he remarked to her with a grin before heading back to the slaver and Sati. "We'll take you there, and in return, you help our friend."

The slaver stepped forward and got right into Takumi's face. Rai flinched at his sudden closeness to the boy and though she held herself back, she stayed ready in case the slaver tried anything. "And what guarantee do I have that you won't turn me in?" he asked.

Takumi stood his ground despite what seemed like the slaver's attempts to intimidate him. "You don't. You're just going to have to trust us, just as we are trusting you to hold up your end of the deal."

The slaver locked eyes directly with Takumi, who did not take his gaze away. Neither one blinked until finally, the slaver smiled and scoffed, giving Takumi an approving pat on his head. "I knew there was a reason I liked you, boy. You've got courage beyond your age and you've got quite the way with the ladies. I've never seen anyone calm a woman's rage like you," he said with an approving grin before turning to the rest of the group, "So, when do we leave?"

"The sooner the better," Rai remarked, climbing onto Haku's saddle.

"You can ride with me," Sati said, gesturing for him to climb up Daisy's leg to her saddle.

"I've always wanted to ride an air bison," he grinned, climbing up to the saddle as Sati climbed Daisy's head. "Oh and if we're going to be spending more time together, we should really get to know each other. My name's Duran. Don't worry, I already know your names: Bubbly, Kid and Broody," he chuckled to himself as he pointed to Sati, Takumi and Rai respectively.

* * *

The group traveled nonstop towards Shu Jing, crossing the Mo Ce Sea in the process and only stopped to make camp when they reached the shore. "Man, we made pretty good time. I guess it really pays to have an air bison," Duran said impressed, "I say we should reach the town by midday tomorrow!" All four sat around a fire, eating some of Sati's leftover stew as the sun set on the horizon. "So, what exactly happened to you, Bubbly?"

"Well," she began hesitantly, "I was just getting some firewood and this man attacked me. I-I couldn't move or do anything and he tapped me right on my forehead," she explained, tapping the exact spot on her forehead, shivering slightly as she recalled the incident. "The next thing I knew, I couldn't airbend anymore."  
"Hm, yeah that's definitely bloodbending. If I actually knew how to do it, I'd reverse the damage for you, but bloodbending is exceedingly rare and difficult to master. Not to mention the fact that it's been outlawed since the time of Avatar Aang so not many people advertise that they know it. And I'm guessing Broody has no intention of learning bloodbending," he remarked, looking several feet away as Rai practiced her bending.

"Well, I didn't think much of it at first, but a market vendor offered her a waterbending manual and she flat out refused," Takumi said. "Come to think of it, she wouldn't even use it to heal an injury."

"Interesting… how's her firebending?" Duran asked, intrigued.

"Fine. She seems to prefer it and earth over anything else," replied Takumi.

"Has she ever waterbended at all?" Takumi shook his head.

"It's not uncommon for the Avatar to struggle learning an element. Usually, it's the one that contrasts the most with their personality. For Avatar Aang, it was earthbending and for Avatar Korra, it was airbending," Sati explained. "But I don't understand how waterbending would conflict with her…"

"I might have an idea," Duran said, setting his bowl down and making his way over to Rai.

"What do you want," she said sternly rather than asked, not even looking at him to acknowledge his presence.

"I hear you don't like to waterbend," he said, propping his hands on his hips.

"What of it?"

"I know I'm the last person you want to be lectured by, but you're not going to be a very effective Avatar if you don't learn how to waterbend."

"I don't need waterbending," Rai insisted firmly.

"I suppose I shouldn't be surprised you're so afraid of it, given what you've had to endure at his hands."

"I'm not afraid!" she turned and yelled at him.

"I think you are. I've heard about what he's capable of; he's made you do things, hasn't he? Things no little girl should be made to do."

"You don't know anything! I'm not going to talk about this with you," she said, turning away from Duran.

"Fine, no more talk," Duran shrugged his shoulders. With Rai's back still turned on him, he silently drew water out from his pouch and waved it around his body before thrusting his arm forward and striking Rai in the back. The force of the blow knocked her off her feet and drenched her clothes. She growled under her breath like an angry beast and rose to her feet, glaring her bright green eyes at him. She stomped her foot on the ground, took a wide, low stance and raised both her arms, raising the earth towards him. Duran, however, easily side-stepped away and avoided the attack like an elegant dancer.

"Pah! Is that the best you can do, Avatar?" he taunted with a smile.

"Shut up!" she yelled furiously, throwing a fireball towards him. With little effort, he pulled water from nearby sources - puddles and some plants - to form a bubble of water, catching the fireball and dousing it instantly. "You're not here to lecture me," Rai said, crossing her arms defiantly.

"I've seen children bend water better than that," he continued taunting.

Rai narrowed her eyes angrily at him. "I'd shut your mouth if I were you. Keep talking and I might not be able to keep my end of the bargain in letting you live."

"Then your little friend will be powerless. The way I see it," casually leaning up against a tree, "You need me."

"Like I need you to teach me waterbending," she remarked, her voice dripping in sarcasm.

Duran simply gave her a fierce smile as he widened his stance and pulled some water from the nearby pond. His movements were slow, rhythmic, and almost hypnotic. She couldn't help but watch with a little fascination as he bent and twisted the water around his body. Then, all of a sudden, he lashed out towards her and a tiny water whip struck her across the cheek faster than she could dodge and defend. She yelped in shock at this sudden pain as she reached up and gently touched the spot where she was hit. There was no break on her skin and when she examined her fingertips, she saw no blood. She looked back at Duran with venom in her eyes. "What? Was that too fast for you? It's okay, I can do it again," he smirked, readying his water for another assault. Duran twirled the water around some more. Despite its gentle flow and movements, Rai was fully aware of the danger and took a solid stance in response. But as she moved her hands to bend, she felt another strike across her face as he lashes like lightning; another water whip striking its target.

"Ah!" she cried out, hissing in pain as she gently touched her other cheek. She couldn't believe it. How was he able to bypass her defences and strike her so easily?

In a commanding tone with a slight growl in his voice, Duran declared, "Come oooon, Avatar! Show me what you got!"

Rai narrowed her eyes as a serious smirk spread across her face. "You asked for it." Rai stomped her foot on the ground, bringing up boulders from the earth and proceeded to kick each one towards Duran one by one.

Duran took the first one in the chest, but then with the grace of a dancer, effortlessly flowed around the boulders like a stream of water. To Rai, however, it was different than watching Sati move. Duran wasn't jumping or being acrobatic. He was making constant forward progression toward her while spinning and ducking, staying light on his feet but also in a constant motion. What surprised Rai was that he was not bending as much as expected, instead just moving closer toward her. When she finally realized he had gotten so close to her despite her frontal assault on him, she quickly recoiled and struck him with a wide air blast. Duran was unable to avoid such a wide and forceful blast and was pushed right off his feet by the force of the air and landed roughly on his back.

He rolled to his feet with a low chuckle. "Switching up tactics, huh? Okay. This might just get entertaining." Duran enters a fighting stance, keeping his feet solidly planted as he pulls more water from around him, holding it close to his body and allowing it to flow around him like a flowing spirit dancing in the wind.

 _'Why isn't he attacking?'_ she thought furiously, truly puzzled by this. "Why aren't you attacking?! I thought we were fighting!" she yelled.

Duran smirked and sternly replied, "We are." Duran suddenly solidified the water into a sharpened icicle and with a speedy tornado kick, he sent the deadly spike hurling straight at her. Rai was quick though, and jumped to the side. If she hadn't, that frozen spear would have punctured her chest. Her brief recovery period only lasted a second though. When she turned back to face him, he was in almost the same position he started in; solid stance, water flowing around him, and still not advancing, instead holding a fierce gaze upon her.

Rai tried not to look impressed at how he's able to avoid everything she throws at him. Masking her curiosity as best as she could, she asked, "How are you doing that?"

"Don't you know the first thing about waterbending?" Duran broke his blob of water into multiple smaller ice shards, each of them sharply tipped. Rai prepared to dodge them, but she relaxed and looked at Duran in confusion when she realized the icicles were not coming at her. Instead, Duran held them steady like his gaze.

"Enlighten me."

"Gladly," he smiled, thrusting his arms forward, sending the storm of icicles towards her like a swarm of angry bees ready to sting. Rai didn't have much time to think and did the first thing that her instincts told her to do. She waved her arms, generating a firewall in front of her, melting the icicles back into water before they can strike her.

"Fire this time, huh?" Duran loosened up his stance, rolled his shoulders, and cracked his neck. "Nice trick with melting the ice, but you must realize that water douses fire." Duran jumped into a more aggressive stance, causing Rai to flinch and assume one of her own.

"Maybe, but there's no limit to the fire I can make!" Rai opened her mouth as a bright stream of fire emerged from her mouth.

Duran simply countered by raising a wall of water of his own, dousing the flames and protecting him. He pulled the water back and sent a stream towards Rai, who countered with her own earth wall. However, Duran easily moved the water around the earth wall, striking Rai on her side and knocking her to the ground. "It doesn't matter what you throw at me, Avatar. I'll find a way through your defences. That is the way of waterbending," he said confidently, taking a combat stance and bringing the water back to him. Rai grit her teeth and charged recklessly and angrily. Duran drew his water back and once she got close enough, unleashed a deluge of water onto her. Rai thrust her arm forward, trying to bend the water that was coming towards her, but it continued down its path and struck her. She fell back and sat on the ground, drenched and panting, beaten and humiliated. She did nothing except glare as the imposing figure approached and stood over her. She expected him to attack, finish her off and even prepared herself for the assault, but to her surprise, Duran extended a helping hand to her and with a surprisingly sincere expression, said, "Stand up. An Avatar does not belong on her knees."

However, Rai did not take his hand and instead said, "You could just kill me right now, get some reward or bonus from your friends. What's stopping you? Why are you so intent on helping me learn to waterbend?" she asked, cocking her eyebrow in confusion.

He extended his hand closer, silently offering to help her up. "Now where would the fun be in that?"

Rai gently knocked his hand away with the back of her hand and pushed herself up. "What other possible reason is there?"

Duran chuckled. "Why the sudden interest in my life story? I'm just a monster who is better off dead, right?" he asked, taking a few steps away from her while casually resting his hands on the back of his head.

"You've given me no other reason to think of you as anything else."

Duran moved over to a large boulder and took a seat on it. "Does the name Hui Ling mean anything to you?"

Rai shrugged. "Should it?"

"I suppose not. Although if it helps, she's a slave just like you were."

"So were many others. So _are_ many others," she emphasized her second statement. "What's your point?"

"You hate waterbending because all it's ever been used for in your perspective is to hurt and control you," he said, suddenly changing topics causing Rai to furrow her eyebrows in confusion. "Waterbending isn't just about control - frankly, if you think about it all the elements are about control - but that's not my point. Waterbending is about adaptability, change, taking your opponent's strength and turning it against them. It's not like earth or firebending, which are fuelled by strength and aggression. Waterbending is more defensive and fluid. I could show you, if you'd like," he offered sincerely.

Rai cocked her eyebrow at Duran in a mixture of confusion and suspicion. "Why would you want to help me? And why, for that matter, would I take help from a slaver?"

"Well, you already are taking help from a slaver with this deal. But I wasn't always a slaver, you know," he began. Duran's voice suddenly became soft with a light serious tone, but nothing like before when he was so charismatically bold. He almost sounded almost… sincere. Rai was puzzled by the sudden change, but kept her guard up. "Before, I was but a humble fisherman. And I'm sure you're wondering, how'd a charismatic guy like me go from humble fisherman to ruthless slaver?" As he spoke, Duran pulled out a small photograph from inside his jacket and handed it to Rai.

"Who's this?" she asked, looking at a younger Duran sitting with a young woman and little girl in the photo.

"My sister and her kid, a little firecracker this one: Hui lived in a small town in the mountains. I was on my way to visit them one day when I discovered the entire village burned to the ground, bodies everywhere," Duran recounted, the tone of his voice suddenly dropping from charismatic to remorseful. "I found my sister's body, but Hui was nowhere to be found. You hear stories about towns disappearing overnight and children going missing. Most people just think it's malevolent spirits at work, a convenient excuse slavers use to cover their tracks. Nobody ever thinks it'll happen to them or someone they know until it does. That's how I knew she was taken by slavers. It took me months to track down the slave trade. I joined up under the pretence that I was desperate for work, no matter what it was and they didn't think much of it. I knew how to keep my head down and be patient. You learn that sort of thing as a fisherman: biding your time until you get the catch you've been waiting for. I know joining up with them wasn't the right way to go about it and I've had to do a lot of bad things since. She might even be horrified with me, but it was only option I had to find her. She'd be about the kid's age now," Duran said, casting his gaze towards Takumi for a brief moment.

"And what does this have to do with you teaching me waterbending?" Rai asked, handing Duran back the photo.

"I finally managed to track Hui's trail. She had been sold to a bandit leader by the name of Goro." Rai gasped at the mention of his name, which did not go unnoticed by Duran. "But, from what I heard, one of his slave went crazy and started a riot. The bandits ran off and the slaves got away. I managed to track down one of those bandits and get him drunk enough to loosen those lips, and he let slip that this slave was undoubtedly the Avatar. I haven't been able to track Hui down since, but I at least know that she's not in the hands of slavers or bandits anymore… and that's thanks to you. That's why I'm heading to Shu Jing. My contact there has a lead on where I might be able to find Hui. She wouldn't have had the fighting chance she did without you. Please, let me repay you." Rai said nothing as she stepped to the side. Her mind was reeling at this revelation. She had never thought of slavers as nothing more than heartless and soulless monsters that would all eventually meet the end of her blades, but here standing before her was a slaver with noble intentions? She could barely process the paradox! Her mind instantly went to the conclusion that he was lying, that this was all some elaborate, falsified story. But what would be the point of that? Why make up a story like that? "You don't have to believe me, but that is my truth."

She didn't have to say anything for Duran to know she was at the very least, entertaining his offer. Regardless of what her answer would be, he stepped forward and took a stance, pulling a ball of water from a nearby puddle and holding it the air to demonstrate to her the form. Duran held his position, giving Rai time to mimic it, however as she tried to lift the water out from another puddle, her hold on it broke within seconds and the water splashed back onto the ground. Rai growled in frustration and shut her eyes in an effort to focus. She tried again and again, but each time she failed to lift the water completely out of the puddle.

"Water is the element of change, of adaptability. The way each bender moves is unique. Don't try to block out the trauma. Instead, focus on it. Turn that pain into your strength."

Rai's eyes burst open, flashing white for a split second, as she instantly recalled the painful memories of a water whip striking her back over and over again, the feeling of drowning, water being forced at her face and depriving her of air and finally, the feeling of helplessness when she couldn't control her own body. She stepped forward and with a rage-filled battlecry, drew water from both the puddle and Duran's bubble of water to her and sliced through a thick tree trunk. Rai stared in amazement as the tree slide to the ground and fell with a loud boom. She was pulled out of her deep thoughts by the sound of Duran clapping behind her.

"Impressive. You're a natural, Broody," Duran complimented with a light applause. "You don't usually see such aggression fuelled waterbending, but if it works for you, that's all that matters."

"What else can you show me?" Rai asked.

* * *

"Well, as promised, here's my end of the bargain," Duran said, handing a folded piece of paper to Rai as they stood just in front of the entrance to the town of Shu Jing. She unfolded it, revealing a large map of the world with various points marked with Xs.

"What is this?" she asked.

"That is a map marking all the known locations of bandit cells and slaver hideouts. Red is bandits, black is slavers, green is land and the blue is water. It was always my intention to give this information to the authorities once I found my niece, but you and I both know just how ineffective they can be with this sort of thing," he said as Rai nodded in agreement while Takumi and Sati only exchanged confused looks at that last statement. "Just keep in mind that some groups may have moved by now, but most of the information should be accurate. I'm betting you'll be able to track down a bloodbender in one of those locations. And who knows, you might even run into the Blue Spirit!" he joked.

"Thank you for your help," Takumi smiled.

"You take care kid," Duran chuckled. "And you work on your waterbending, Broody." Rai said nothing, instead only giving him a curt nod. With that, Duran disappeared into an alleyway and out of sight.

"So, where do we go now?" Sati asked.

Rai pulled out the map Duran had given her and pointed to the red X closest to Shu Jing. "We'll head south. That's the closest bandit cell, so we'll start there."

* * *

 **Originally, the plan was Duran to restore Sati's bending. But I didn't like the idea of that problem being solved literally in one chapter since the problem began. Know what I mean?**

 **Anyway, another thanks to my buddy Powershade117 for his help on the chapter.**

 **Next chapter: Rai storms a bandit fort for clues in search of a bloodbender, but encounters a mythic spirit that is anything but.**


	11. The Blue Spirit

"Well, whad'ya know? Duran's information was solid," Rai said, standing at the top of a large hill overlooking a small settlement with a huge factory just below. She held up the map he had given her, confirming the factory below was indeed the marked location they had gone to from Shu Jing. She folded the map back up and tucked it into her pocket as the sun began setting, bathing the area in an amber light.

"What is that place?" Takumi asked, stepping up to the edge next to her to overlook the abandoned settlement.

"That is a refinery, or at least it used to be. It was founded after the Hundred Year War but it shut down decades ago. The factory's been abandoned for years, which makes it the perfect place for bandits to set up base in," she explained.

"So what's the plan?" Sati asked.

"The plan is I go in alone," Rai stated firmly.

"What? You can't just march into a bandit fortress by yourself!" Takumi protested.

"I can and I will. One person going in lowers the risk of being discovered and it means I can focus on what I'm looking for without having to worry about you two."

"And how exactly are you going to find a bloodbender?" asked Takumi.

"Simple, bandit cells keep rosters of their members, including any bending abilities. Not every bandit leader cares to get to know his underlings so personally, so they just write down the details for quick reference. I find that list and I'll know if there's a bloodbender in there. So any more than one going in is just unnecessary."

"But-" they both started, but Rai interrupted them.

"I know you two want to help, but you'll help me by staying out of the way," she said to them with a faint hint of compassion while turning away and preparing to slide down the dirt hill. "Besides, if on the off chance I happen to screw up and get myself captured, I'll need someone to rescue me, won't I?" she remarked, sliding down the hill. She hadn't turned around to see Takumi and Sati's reaction, but she knew that would be enough to placate them. She swiftly made her way into the abandoned settlement and ducked behind one of the buildings leading up to the abandoned factory. She poked her head out, but saw no guards, not even a single person in sight. She pulled her head back into the alley and closed her eyes, concentrating before slamming her foot into the ground and reading the seismic waves. "Hm, definitely occupied. Too many to take head on." Rai emerged from the alley and noticed the chimneys of the factory. "They wouldn't want to advertise their location, so there's no way they'd be using those for fires." With that, Rai launched herself into the air straight towards one of the smokestacks with an earth pillar. She cushioned her landing with some airbending so as not to make any noise as she carefully slid down the chimney shaft. When she reached the bottom, a metal gate stood in her way, but she easily metalbent the locking mechanism open. She stomped on the metal floor, reading the seismic waves again. Most of the bandits were located in the main factory floor, but there were a few walking around or in what used to be the small offices. "No one upstairs though." Rai stealthily made her way up the stairs and entered what was once the main office. What remained of the desk and shelving had decayed and looked incredibly run down.

The wall was covered in a large map of the world with various tacks and pen markings drawn over it. She moved over to the desk where letters were messily scattered across it. She bent over the desk and began scanning the letters looking for a roster. She lifted the list once she found it, quickly scanning for any bloodbenders, but unfortunately none were listed. She set the list down and began looking at the rest of the papers. "This is all correspondence with other bandit groups. There's gotta be something here that can lead me to a bloodbender and Goro," she muttered to herself. As she scanned through the letters looking for Goro's or another familiar name, but nothing was coming up. However, she did notice one name appearing several times: Ryota. "Ryota… Who's Ryota?" Rai quickly scanned a few of the letters. "Hm, looks like a new figurehead in the slave trade." But before she could search further, her head shot up when she heard the doorknob begin to turn. "Dammit," she cursed under her breath before quickly ducking into a nearby large cabinet. She couldn't see who entered, but she heard them shut the door once they entered. Judging from the footsteps, she figured that it was only a single person. She heard them walk towards her direction and braced herself for them to open the cabinet, but nothing happened. Cautiously, she pushed the door open slightly and saw the person who entered leaning over the table just as she had earlier. He was dressed completely in black with dual sabers sheathed across his back and long black hair tied in a low ponytail coming out the bottom of a large black hood. The wood of the cabinet creaked as she shifted her weight, a faint sound that the man seemed to notice. She sharply drew back from the door as she heard the sound his swords being unsheathed. She counted the steps as he drew closer and took a deep breath. Once she heard the creak of the cabinet door being opened, she leapt forward and tackled the man, knocking him into the desk. She hovered over him, pinning him to the desk with her gauntlet blade extended and ready to strike, but she drew back slightly in shock at the sight of his face… or rather the blue demon mask that obscured his face from her sight. For a moment, Rai could have sworn she heard the man gasp from beneath the mask. She regained her composure and leaned forward, keeping the masked man pinned to the desk firmly. She saw from the corner of her eyes that he held his twin swords in both of his hands, but even when he could have used them to threaten her as well, he did not raise them, nor did he seem to struggle against her grip.

"A blue mask, huh? Either bandits have started wearing masks… or you're this Blue Spirit I've heard so much about. So which is it?" she whispered, bringing her blade closer to his neck. The masked man said nothing as he released his grip on his swords and raised his hands in surrender. Before Rai could utter another word, the pair quickly shot their heads towards the door as it opened and two bandits entered.

"What the? Hey!" one of them called in surprise as both thrust their fists forward, sending twin streams of fire at them. Rai quickly released her grip on the masked man and blew the flames back with an air blast before kicking the desk over and taking shelter behind it. The desk took another blast of fire, but it would not survive a continued assault.

The masked man retrieved his fallen blades and took shelter with her before gruffly whispering to her, "Do that again." Rai cocked her eyebrow in confusion for a moment before standing up as the flames died down for a second. She blasted the two bandits with air as the masked man moved from behind her and jumped into her air blast, using it to carrying him to the bandits at great momentum. He thrust both blades into each of the bandits' chests as they cried out in pain. The masked man stood up and shook the thick blood from his blades before gesturing her to follow him.

"Kills bandits and wears a blue mask. Definitely the Blue Spirit," she remarked to herself, following after him. The bandits had apparently heard their commotion and they were soon rushed by bandits. The Blue Spirit sheathed his blades and quickly grabbed Rai by her wrist, pulling her down another hallway as the bandits chased after them. He ran straight towards a window ahead and jumped through, breaking the glass as Rai followed and they landed in the bandit filled factory floor below.

The pair drew their blades and stood back to back as nearly ten bandits surrounded them. "Well, look at what we've got here. Everyone remember what we do to intruders, especially the pretty ones?" The rest of the bandits grinned and snickered while Rai merely rolled her eyes and scoffed. As she scanned the room for anything she could use to get them out, she spotted a pile of explosives in the far corner. Of course there were explosives, she figured, this was a mining facility after all.

She subtly nudged the Blue Spirit behind her with her elbow and motioned to the explosives. "Cover me," she whispered. Rai dashed forward and leapt over the bandits with a gust of air. She raced over to the explosives, taking a quick glance behind her to see the Blue Spirit still on his feet and fighting multiple enemies. When she reached the boxes, she pulled out a short detonation cord and lit the end with her fingertips before a thick arm wrapped roughly around her neck and pulled her up to her feet. She reacted instantly and stomped her foot in the ground, causing two earth pillars to rise from the ground directly under the bandit's feet, lifting him off the ground and allowing Rai to flip him over and slam him on his back. She turned around and waved her arms, drawing the Blue Spirit towards her with another gust of wind. "Let's go!" she shouted. As they ran out the loading doors, the Blue Spirit sliced through the chains that held the doors up, causing them to slam down, sealing the bandits inside before sheathing his blades once again. They managed to get a few feet away as the factory suddenly exploded. The Blue Spirit quickly shielded Rai from the blast with his body as force of the explosion pushed them off their feet and threw them into a nearby building. Still holding onto Rai, the Blue Spirit's back struck the wall and broke right through the weakened and dilapidated material as they rolled onto the ground.

Rai groaned and pushed the Blue Spirit off her and scowled at the sight of the blazing factory. "So much for that..." she muttered. "Hey," she started, turning to address the Blue Spirit, but stopped at the sight of him still on the ground, not moving. She reached her hand out and pulled off the mask, revealing a young man's face beneath. He was unconscious, but still breathing. She sighed and, with the mask in hand, she lifted the man across her shoulders and back and held him secure by an arm and leg. Before she made it back to camp, she spotted Takumi and Sati already running down the hill towards her.

"Rai! Are you ok?" Sati asked in worry.

"We saw the explosion!" Takumi exclaimed. "Who's that? One of the bandits?"

"Not exactly. I'll explain back at camp," she replied. When they reached their campsite, Rai gently lay the man she carried on the grass.

"Did you find what you were looking for?" Sati asked.

"No bloodbenders in that cell. Didn't get much of a chance to explore anything else. Things got… dicey," she replied, looking back at the large cloud of smoke still going from the explosion.

"And who is this?" Takumi asked again. Rai said nothing and simply handed Takumi the blue demon mask she held in her hand. "T-the Blue Spirit?" he asked.

"It would appear so," Rai remarked.

"I had heard stories about the Blue Spirit back during the time of Avatar Aang. Do you think he was human too?" Sati asked.

"It's possible. Either way, this Blue Spirit is just a normal human after all. Not a spirit."

"It's a bit disappointing to be honest. I was hoping to meet a spirit," Takumi said in a disappointed tone.

"You lived in Republic City. There's a spirit portal there and you're telling me you've never met a spirit?" Rai asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"You're the Avatar. Have you met a spirit?" Takumi asked back. Rai opened her mouth to argue, but before she could even speak, the unmasked spirit began to stir and groan.

"Hey, look. He's coming around," said Sati.

The pale boy groaned and slowly opened his pale blue eyes as he sat up. He blinked a few times to clear his sight and saw three figures standing over him. His eyes quickly glanced over Sati and Takumi before landing on Rai. "It's you."

Rai cocked her eyebrow in confusion. "Do I know you?" she asked.

"Perhaps not, but I know you, Rai," he said sincerely.

However, at the mention of her name, Rai quickly bent down to his level and whipped out one of her arm blades and held it up threateningly. "How do you know my name?" she asked darkly with narrowed eyes.

"I could never forget you," he whispered. "I could never forget that day. I don't expect you to remember me; we didn't interact much then. But I remember you… and Kala."

Rai gasped and her eyes widened in shock as she drew her blade away. "Who's Kala?" Sati asked.

"H-how do you know that name?" Rai whispered. Just then, Haku suddenly hissed and snarled widely as they heard something rustling in the bushes. The others became alert as a large horned, white furred beast with a saddle emerged growling at Haku with equal threat.

"Wait!" Hiro cried, running between the two beasts and holding his arms out defensively. "It's ok. He's with me." As the others relaxed, the great white beast came up to the boy from behind and affectionately nuzzled against his leg. "This is Griffith, my puma goat. I usually have him stay out of sight when I attack bandits and slavers. My name is Hiro," he said, pulling a red and white oriental shirt from one of the packs of Griffith's saddle and exchanging it with the black shirt he had on. As he changed his shirt, the three caught sight of the multitude of scars across his back, shoulders and arms. As he buttoned up his new shirt, he turned around to speak to them. "I was one of the slaves Goro purchased, along with you and Kala and several others. I worked in the forge so we never really had a chance to interact with each other, but I could never forget you or that day." Once he finished buttoning his shirt, he threw on a sleeveless black jacket and undid his ponytail, allowing his long black hair to flow freely. "I was there when they when they killed Kala… to teach us a lesson. I saw what happened and I saw what you did next. You saved us. Thanks to you, I was given a second chance."

"You... you were there…" Rai whispered, taking a step back as she processed this.

"You were a slave?" Takumi exclaimed in shock.

Rai looked away in shame and reluctantly muttered, "I... I was…"

"Why didn't you tell me? Or us for that matter?" he asked, gesturing to Sati as well.

"I don't know who you are kid, but Rai doesn't have to tell you anything," Hiro said, giving Takumi a scornful glare.

"Hey!" Takumi cried, offended.

"Quiet!" Rai shouted, silencing the quarrelling boys. "It's not a part of my life that I like to talk about!" Rai said sharply to Takumi before turning to Hiro. "How did you go from ex-slave to vigilante?"

"To answer your question: I tried to go back to a normal life, I really did. When you scared the bandits away and disappeared, the rest of us managed to make our way to a nearby town and find the authorities. None of us said what you did or what you were. Most of the other children were still in shock and too traumatized over the whole ordeal. They tried sorting us out and figuring out where to put us, but most of us had no families or home left. The slavers made sure of that. But I was lucky… if you can call it that," he scoffed, "I had some extended family in another town so they took me in. They tried to give me time to adjust, but they just couldn't understand what we had to endure. Even some of the other kids in the town tried to befriend me, but all I could see was their blissful ignorance. I couldn't help but feel envious that they lived such a life blind to the true horrors of this world. Every night, I couldn't sleep and whenever I could, it was always nightmares. Whenever I closed my eyes, I was afraid that if I opened them again, I'd be back there: chains on my wrists and a whip to my back. Then, I started thinking about all the other slaves, all the other children who were still suffering while I just sat there trying to forget what happened to me like it was nothing! It wasn't nothing! It did happen to me and it was still happening to so many others. I had been given a second chance because of you. I swore to myself that I wouldn't rest until I eradicated every slaver I could find and…" Hiro trailed off but kept his gaze locked with Rai's.

"And what?" Rai asked, pushing him to finish his sentence.

"And to find you," he answered.

"Well, that's not creepy" Takumi whispered to Sati.

"Yeah, no kidding," Sati agreed.

Rai sharply hushed Sati and Takumi before turning back to Hiro. "Find me? Why?"

"Because you were the one who was strong enough to fight back, to escape; the one who made my freedom possible. I owe you a debt, I owe you my life," he said, falling to one knee and bowing to her.

Rai instantly recoiled at this gesture and stepped back, narrowing her eyes angrily. "Debt? I'm not looking for someone to repay a debt!"

"Whether you think so or not, I do. My life belongs to you and I pledge myself to you."

"I'm not looking to fill the void of a master for a lost ex-slave!" Rai argued.

"That's not what I'm trying to do!" Hiro protested, standing up. "I only wish to help you in any way that I can. Please! I have seen how broken and dependent some slaves become and how desperate they are to fill their need with a new master, but I swear that is not what I intend!"

"Are you sure? Maybe you just don't realize that you're trying to fill a void," Rai retorted.

"Please, I only wish to help your crusade. My blades and my fire are yours to command. Think of me not as a slave, but as a loyal follower."

Rai paused in silence for a moment, contemplating his words. "I hear you've been tracking bandits. How successful have you been in tracking Goro?"

"Unfortunately relatively unsuccessful. He knows how to cover his tracks, especially now that he knows the Blue Spirit is on his tail. By the time I get to where I've tracked him, he's already moved on to another location. I swear I will not be a hinderance. Please let me join you."

"Fine," Rai muttered, "But tell no one of what I am. Understand?"

"I have never spoken of that day to anyone else and I won't start now. You have my word," Hiro bowed.

Takumi then tugged on Rai's sleeve, silently coaxing her away. "Sati, please help Hiro get settled into camp," she said before walking to the far side of camp with Takumi.

"He sure is a strange one," the young boy remarked.

"You have something to say about this, I imagine?"

"Are you sure it's a good idea to trust this guy so suddenly? We have no way of knowing if this guy is legit!"

"He knew her name…" Rai commented while looking at Hiro from afar. "There's no other explanation for it. He was there, he's telling the truth."

"Ok, he may know some specific details, but what if he was one of the bandits' kids or something?"

"There were no children there that weren't slaves," Rai answered simply. "You saw the scars on his body, just as you saw mine."

Takumi stood there in silence, not sure of what other argument he could make. Instead, he hesitantly asked, "W-were you really a slave?"

"I don't want to talk about it," she muttered, walking past Takumi and back to the camp. As she made her way to Hiro, she suddenly recalled part of the fortune teller's premonition. _'"A hero in blue…"'_ And now she had met the Blue Spirit, whose name was Hiro! She cursed under her breath at how ridiculous the entire thing was. It had to be a coincidence! But, so far each prediction had come true. If that was so, then it meant she would reunite with Goro soon.

* * *

Later that night, the group sat around a campfire eating their dinner. "So, Hiro, if you don't mind me asking, what was it like?" Sati asked, trying to make conversation and hopefully get to know their group's newcomer a little better.

"Being a slave? I'm sure Rai has told you enough already."

"Actually, she's never mentioned it before today," Takumi remarked, glancing over at the blonde.

"Heh, well I can't blame her. It was the single most horrifying experience of my life, a living hell that I didn't think would end," he replied grimly, leaving an uncomfortable silence among them.

"Rai, was it really like that?" Sati asked innocently.

"I said I don't want to talk about it!" she yelled, throwing her empty plate to the ground and walking away from the campfire.

"I-I didn't mean to make her upset," Sati said, hanging her head with guilt. "I just don't understand why she's always pushing us away so much," she sighed in defeat.

"That's just it. You can never understand, neither of you could," Hiro smoke as the fire crackled.

"Why's that?" Takumi asked, slightly insulted.

Hiro glanced over to Rai, who sat a fair distance away from camp, looking up at the stars in the night sky. "You two may think of me as the newcomer in this group and that I have no right to speak about her like that, but the fact is I knew her before either of you. There's a reason Rai is the way she is. As much as the world wants you to believe that it doesn't, slavery is still a common occurrence. They only target small towns and communities, places that most people won't notice are gone. When they come, they take all the children and kill every last person in the village before burning it all to the ground."

"Th-that's horrible," Sati gasped in horror.

"It's an insurance policy, to ensure that any slaves that do somehow manage to escape have nowhere to go and no one to go back to. I was eight when they came to my village," Hiro revealed. "My entire village was wiped out and I was sold into slavery. A man named Goro purchased me and since I was a firebender, I was put to work in his forge. When you are made a slave, you are stripped of everything: your family, your home, belongings, dignity and worst of all, your identity. If you're lucky enough, you get to keep your name. First they break you, in body and spirit so as to crush any bit of hope you have and then they reforge you into what they want. I have seen slaves so broken that they would cut off their own hand with a smile on their face if it pleased their master."

Takumi and Sati sat in silence, unable to accept Hiro's words as true. They exchanged a look before Sati hesitantly asked, "How did you escape?"

"I was freed by her," he said, looking at Rai in the distance. "By the time the slavers had come to my village, Rai's home had already been destroyed. She was six at the time. We were purchased by Goro together, along with a few others. Any mistake or slip up and we were punished, harshly. Rai had it worse than any of us; she was Goro's personal slave and he was a cruel, sadistic psychopath. He would do things to her and make her do things she didn't want to, sometimes to other slaves, sometimes to herself. It was always his intention to… deflower her," Hiro struggled to speak, disgusted by the very idea, "but he wanted to wait until she was older. He at least had the decency to not force himself onto a child, but that is by no means a redeeming quality for him. In the end, he never got his chance." Takumi shivered in disgust at the very thought. He quickly glanced over to Rai and tried to imagine just what she had to go through to survive while Hiro went on. "Rai was always a fighter," Hiro continued. "She resisted at every opportunity and it seemed like no amount of punishment could break her. I admired that unbreakable spirit in her."

"What happened then? How did you all escape? Couldn't she just fight back with her powers?" Sati asked.

"None of us knew she was the Avatar then, not even her," Hiro answered. "When we were sold to Goro, Rai became close with another slave, Kala. Perhaps Kala reminded her of someone or she felt the need to protect Kala. Either way, Rai loved her. Kala was a bit of a klutz and always terrified. She was messed up her work so often and Rai was always there to save her and protect her. That courage was inspiring, not just to me, but to Kala as well. You see, one day, Goro ordered Rai to be tied to a post for seven days without food or water."

"What? That's inhumane!" Sati cried.

"Slave owners usually are. Goro had hoped it would break her, but Rai still kept going strong. It wasn't sheer willpower though, it was Kala. None of us knew it then, but Kala had been sneaking food and water to Rai every night even when Rai told her not to. It was only bits and scraps, but it was enough to keep her going. But, one night, Kala was discovered in the act. The entire camp was woken up and Kala was beaten to death in front of us all to teach us a lesson of what would happen should any of us disobey." Takumi and Sati fell silent. "Rai could only watch as someone dear to her was killed right in front of her. And then, it happened. Her eyes turned pure white as she ripped free of her restraints and rose into the air like a god. Goro and his bandits ran as Rai unleashed all of her might. She protected us from harm and killed the one who killed Kala. After that, she disappeared and the rest of us made our way to a town. But after everything that I had been through, I couldn't just sit and be… normal anymore. The memory of all that pain, that torture was still so fresh in my mind, but what was more prevalent was the memory of her," Hiro explained, absentmindedly glancing towards Rai. "Goro wasn't the only person to purchase slaves and he wouldn't be the last. I knew I had to do something. I left home and started tracking the slave trade, killing slavers and freeing their captives."

"I-I never knew… how horrible," Sati whispered sadly.

"Rai's had to endure a lot of pain and suffering. I can understand why she wants to live the rest of her life in anonymity."

"But that's what I don't understand! She's the Avatar! She has a duty to the world!" Sati exclaimed.

"How many Avatars do you think went undocumented before the world started catching on? Just try to put yourself in her shoes, Sati. Rai was torn from her home and family and forced into a position where people forced her to do what they wanted. The same is done to the Avatar."

"What? That's not true!" she protested.

"Think about it. When the Avatar is identified, he or she is taken from their home and sent around the world to learn the other elements and essentially forced to accept the responsibility that comes with the mantle of the Avatar. Not all Avatars are the same, Sati. Each Avatar is different and each views the duties differently, whether as a great honor or a burden. Not every Avatar is a Korra, happily taking on the mantle. Sometimes you'll get an Aang, an Avatar who would do anything to not be the Avatar. And sure, Aang did eventually accept the mantle, but Rai won't ever allow someone to tell her how to live her life. That's why she rejects the mantle of the Avatar; to her, it's just another form of slavery."

Takumi stared down at his half-empty plate, suddenly feeling guilty for having been so insistent with Rai that she share her past. He had never thought it would be that bad! But that was no excuse. He couldn't imagine how every time he asked, it only served to bring up all those painful memories for her. He set his plate down and hesitantly made his way over to Rai, who continued staring up into the sky.

"What do you want Takumi?" she asked, not even turning around.

"I'm sorry," he said, hanging his head.

"What for?" she asked.

"All this time I had been pushing you to open up. I should have been more respectful."

Rai sighed and closed her eyes for a moment. "You don't need to be sorry, Takumi. It's out in the open now, so let's just leave it at that." Takumi smiled at Rai as he sat down next to her and the two kept looking at the stars in the night sky above.

* * *

 **Next chapter: Takumi isn't happy with the new member of their group and voices his concerns, but Hiro has a few concerns of his own.**


	12. Disagreement

**Oh geez a month flew by fast! Sorry to keep you guys waiting. Kinda lost the mood to write for a bit while I tried catching up on some drawing. Bu**

* * *

With their new companion, the group continued traveling deeper into the Fire Nation, eventually getting closer to the city where Takumi's family supposedly lived. One night, they settled down for camp when Rai suddenly sat up straight, fully alert.

"What's wr-" Sati began to ask until Rai held up her hand and shushed her.

"Shh," Rai closed her eyes as the eyes of her three companions locked on her intensely. When her eyes opened, she flipped onto her knees and slammed her fist into the dirt, sending a shockwave through the earth as several voices yelped in response.

"Get them!" one voice cried.

Suddenly, three men brandishing swords emerged from the bushes. Rai immediately took a stance as Hiro drew his swords, ready to fight off these assailants. Rai easily caught one of the attackers by trapping his feet in rock, keeping him in place as she delivered a solid punch to his face while Hiro effortlessly fought off the other two with either of his swords blocking and parrying theirs. "Who sent you?" Rai growled, pinning the man to a tree and pressing her forearm over his throat. When he didn't respond fast enough, Rai drew him back and shoved him into the tree trunk again, repeating her question.

"N-no one…" he struggled to whisper against Rai's arm pressing on his throat.

"Liar! Was it Goro? Or Peng?" she asked.

"I-I don't know what you're… talking about…" he coughed.

"Rai, look out!" She recognized Hiro's voice calling out to her as he suddenly tackled her to the ground away from the tree just as one of the attackers sent a stream of water and froze it into a spiky wall of ice between their pinned ally and Rai.

"Fall back!" one of them shouted, as another of them waved his arms, forming a small yet powerful gust of wind to stir up the dirt and dust. Everyone quickly closed their eyes and covered their mouths, coughing. Rai quickly stood up, clearing the area with a strong gust of wind, but their attackers were gone.

"Dammit!" Rai cursed under her breath as she quickly searched the area for any clues or anything they may have dropped.

"Everyone ok?" Sati asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Takumi replied. "Who were those guys?"

"I doubt they were assassins. Far too sloppy," Hiro remarked, sheathing his swords. "They were probably just highwaymen. Fairly common around here."

"What the hell were you thinking?" Rai scolded sharply, marching up to an unsuspecting Hiro.

"What are you talking about?" he asked, confused.

"I didn't let you join me just so you could treat me like a damsel in distress. I don't need your protection," she had scolded to him.

"But I was just…" Hiro began protesting as he realized what she was referring to.

"I'm not looking for a protector. I can take care of myself. Don't make me regret my decision on letting you join me. I'm not your master!" Hiro was visibly upset by this, scolded by the one he was trying to impress so much when he was only trying to be of use to her.

The next morning, everyone was packing up their equipment and clearing their last campsite before the next city. While Rai and Sati packed up their things and tended to their animals, Takumi instead focused his attention on Hiro, who was packing his belongings onto his puma goat's saddle. Once Rai and Sati were away, Takumi marched over to Hiro with shoulders and back upright and a determined look on his face. "What's your deal, Hiro?"

Hiro turned around from Griffith's saddle to address the young boy having either not noticed Takumi approach him or not cared. "My deal?" he asked, confused.

"Rai. Why do you keep fawning over her?" Takumi asked, crossing his arms defiantly.

"I told you, everything I am now is thanks to her. I want nothing more than to be of use to her," Hiro replied, crossing his arms in response.

"I think she's made it clear she doesn't want you treating her like some kind of saviour. Why don't you try just...treating her like a person for a change?"

"Heh, that's funny coming from you, a little boy looking at Rai like his guardian angel, his knight in shining armor. I don't have to explain myself to you, boy. I have the freedom to choose what I do with my life because of her and this is what I choose. Wait," Hiro stopped and pondered for a moment. "You're jealous."

"Wh-what?" Takumi gasped.

"I understand now. Before you had Rai's attention all to yourself and now that I'm here, you feel threatened because I've known Rai longer and better than you. She only took you under her wing to escort you to your family, a destination that we are on the precipice of. Once we reach the city and find your family, you won't have any reason left to travel with her and she'll forget about you."

Without warning, Takumi brought his fist back and gave Hiro a solid punch right in the jaw, causing the vigilante to stumble back a bit. Griffith snorted angrily at Takumi, but Hiro placed his hand gently on the puma goat, calming him. Hiro rubbed his sore cheek and moved his jaw, making sure nothing was broken or dislocated. Nothing was, but the kid certainly hit hard for someone so young and small. "Lay off, you creep!" Takumi exclaimed, firmly standing his ground. "She doesn't need someone hovering over her every move. Just give her some space! And by the way, my name's Takumi."

Hiro examined his hand, seeing no blood, though his cheek ached. He narrowed his eyes at Takumi and swiftly punched Takumi in the jaw as well, sending the young boy falling onto his back. "Rai is perfectly capable of speaking for herself and she does not need some little lost sheep like you to speak for her." Hiro turned to walk away but paused to speak one more time, "And by the way, Takumi, you punch like shit."

"You're deluded! She does speak for herself. You're just not listening!" he shouted, pointing an accusatory finger at the firebender.

Hiro turned his head to look down at Takumi from the corner of his eye. "You are the one who is deluded," he said, before fully turning around to address the boy. "You and the airbender. I see Rai for who she is, not what she should be, not what you are trying to make her."

"...I…" Takumi paused, unsure how to respond to this.

Hiro smirked at Takumi's silence. "You are the one who does not seem to be listening."

"Hey." The two boys turned and saw Rai approach them as she glanced back and forth between Hiro and the fallen Takumi. "Is there a problem here?" she asked.

"No," Hiro answered, "I am ready to depart whenever you are." With that, Hiro climbed onto Griffith's saddle as the puma goat began moving to the edge of the campsite, leaving Rai with Takumi.

Rai sighed and bent down to Takumi's level as he still sat on the ground. "What are you doing, Takumi?"

"I… well, it's just that he…" Takumi sighed in defeat, unable to even explain himself to her.

Rai sighed and stood up, using her earthbending to lift Takumi back onto his feet. "I don't need you to fight my battles either, Takumi." Takumi watched Rai move over to Haku as everyone prepared to move on. He rubbed his sore cheek and flinched at the pain before tending further to Kiwi's saddle.

Rai stormed off, leaving behind the two quarrelling boys. Takumi, so naive but always meaning well even when she didn't need it. But Hiro, so infuriating. The way he acted around her, spoke to her, practically worshipped the ground she walked on. It all just eerily reminded her of some of the slaves she'd seen, slaves so broken that their only driving force to live was to please their beloved master. She would never forget that day Goro had taken her with him to see one of his friends and their slaves. Their bodies were covered in scars, bodies so broken and minds even more broken. Their eyes were so dull and lifeless that they no longer shined in the light. Goro had intended the memory to stick with Rai, to leave such a lasting impression on her that it would cling to her for the rest of her life. And it did, but not in the way Goro had hoped it would. All it did was fuel that fire in her belly. And now Hiro was skirting dangerously close to this line. He said he wanted to help her, be useful to her and that was his freedom of choice. But those other slaves. Even when presented with the chance to escape, they still crawled back to their masters out of the freedom of their choice. At what point did the two situations intersect?

Her brief thoughts were broken by Sati's voice suddenly coming from her right. "You seem tense!"

Rai jumped in shock and barely held in a surprised yelp that escaped her lips before looking to her right to see Sati at eye level with her, but hanging upside down from a low branch.

"How many times do I have to tell you to stop doing that?" she asked, returning to a calm pace of breathing.

"Just until you stop telling me to stop that." she giggled as she flipped backward out of the tree and landed softly on her feet next to Rai.

"What do you want?" Rai asked gruffly.

"Just trying to turn that frown upside down is all!" Sati giggled, reaching over and forcing a smile on Rai's face with her fingers at the corners Rai's lips, who quickly swatted her hands away in response.

"I knew I was getting myself more trouble than I needed by taking on one lost sheep," she said, casting her eyes over to Takumi before shifting over to Hiro, "and now there's two of them!"

"You mean that Hiro guy?"

"I thought letting him join me would be all right, that he could at least be useful in helping me hunt Goro and other slavers down, but I didn't let him stay just to be my protector."

"Hmm, then why did you let him stay?"

"He's... useful, skilled in his blades, despite his misguided intentions."

"He's misguided for wanting to protect you?" Sati probed further.

"He's doing it for the wrong reasons. He thinks that by doing that, he'll please me like a slave attempting to please their master," Rai said with disgust.

"Hmm, so he has nothing to gain by protecting you, except your own well being. Interesting. So what about me?"

"What about you? You were attacked in an attempt to vex me."

"But why are you going to such lengths to help me? You have no obligation to do so except by your own moral code? Am I _your_ master, Rai?"

"No!" Rai protested sharply.

"Because getting my powers back would please me greatly," she chuckled as she checks her nails in a slightly dramatic, yet casual gesture. "You could have easily left me behind after that, tossed me aside because I ceased to be useful and just forget about me. Plus, ignoring the problem would prove that his attempts to vex you failed. Honestly, your… devotion… is more beneficial to my well being than to yours."

Rai stood up. "Don't mistake justice for devotion, Sati. I'm not doing this to please you or make you happy. You were wronged and deserve justice. I'm doing this for me so that my conscience is clear and I'll be one step closer to gutting that son of a bitch."

"And what about his conscience?"

"What about it? What I did back then wasn't for him, it was for justice, for what was right. He doesn't owe me anything."

"I'm sure he'd disagree. And you don't owe me anything either. That doesn't mean I'm not grateful," she said gently with a smile at Rai before walking past her.

"You can think what you want and put whatever meaning into this that you want. That is your freedom. Mine is what I choose to do and why I choose to do it for," Rai called after her.

Silence fell over the group of four as they made their way to the next town. For some, the silence was uncomfortable, for others, it was nothing different to them. Few words were exchanged as they arrived in town. Sati and Takumi volunteered to resupply their rations while Rai and Hiro split up to gather information.

Sati stood inside a small produce market, paying the grocer for her basket of fruits and vegetables. "An airbender eh? Don't see a lot of you around here," the grocer remarked.

"I guess the Fire Lord just takes good care of his people then," Sati replied with a smile.

"That he does," the grocer smiled back. "If you don't mind, could I perhaps see one of those airbending tricks?"

"Oh, I'm afraid I'm just an air acolyte," Sati quickly responded. "So I don't know any airbending. Sorry."

"Aw, that's a shame," the grocer frowned, but quickly regained his composure. "Well, you have yourself a nice day then!"

"Thank you," Sati said with a nervous laugh and smile. When she exited the grocery, she was shocked when a large, hooded man casually leaning on the wall addressed her.

"You're no acolyte," he said.

"Pardon?" Sati asked nervously. She carefully examined this man, but the large hood he wore hid most of his face from her view. All she could see was that he was large, broadly built and rather intimidating in physique. She did however, notice a burn extending across his arm.

"Acolytes have their own uniform and you're wearing a wingsuit. The Nomads don't just hand those out."

"W-what about it?" she asked nervously.

"Nothing, just curious really. Why lie about being an airbender when you're so obviously wearing the wingsuit?"

"Well," Sati began, her cheerful mood and smile suddenly disappearing, "I-I was attacked… by a bloodbender."

"A bloodbender? So…"

"He did something to me a-and now I can't bend anymore!" she admitted. She wasn't sure why she was so suddenly pouring out her problems to this stranger, but once she started, she just couldn't stop.

"Oh, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have pressed you on that," the large man said sincerely.

"It's not your fault. I just wish I was closer to finding a way to get my bending back."

"What about the Avatar?" he asked.

"Nobody's seen her since Avatar Korra died."

"Her? What makes you so certain the new Avatar is a girl?" he asked.

"Oh, um, I don't! I guess I'm still just used to calling the Avatar a girl because Korra was a girl," Sati said with a nervous chuckle. "But either way, the Avatar isn't exactly going to be a likely solution. If no one's found her or him by now, either they don't want to be found or the Avatar cycle has ended."

"But why would it end? Avatar Korra died of natural causes, not while she was in the Avatar state," he pointed out.

"Yes, but there was the Harmonic Convergence during Korra's time. Some people have speculated that it's somehow affecting the Avatar cycle now," Sati said. It's wasn't entirely a lie she was making to cover for Rai. Many scholars and sages had speculated that the destruction of Raava, despite her restoration, somehow affected the cycle.

"You make a good point. Sadly, no one can prove it right or wrong. But with no Avatar, I guess that means there's no way to restore your bending. Unless…"

"Unless what?"

"I may be able to help get your bending back."

"What? How?" Sati asked desperately.

The man held up his hand, signalling for her to lower her voice. He looked around suspiciously before gesturing Sati to follow him into a nearby alleyway where their conversation could be more private. "I do not like to advertise this, but I am… knowledgeable in the forbidden arts that were used against you," he whispered discreetly.

"You're a bloodbender?" Sati whispered loudly in shock.

"Please, not so loud!" he pleaded in an urgent whisper. "I was trained in the art in my youth and I admit, I used it to do some bad things, but all for my own survival I assure you. But I've turned my life around now and vowed to only use this disgusting power to help people."

"Y-you'd help me? You'd restore my bending?" Sati asked, her eyes wide and hopeful.

"In fact, you'd be helping me. This dark art, bloodbending… I want to make sure that it gets used for something good. Would you trust a kindly stranger?"

Sati bit her lip, pondering the offer. Here was a man offering to fix all her problems! But she knew nothing of this man, not his name or his face! Even then, Rai had been driving herself crazy with every dead end they encountered and she was only getting more and more agitated. But now Sati had a chance to completely fix everything and she wasn't about to let it slip away. "I trust you," she smiled.

Sati could see a smile forming on the man's face, but she couldn't completely see it. "Good."

"What do I do?"

"Just get on one knee and I'll do the rest." Sati sat her groceries on the pavement and got down on one knee as the man placed one thumb on her forehead and the other on her sternum. They stayed like that for what felt like an eternity when it had only been a few seconds. "There," he said, pulling his hands away and taking a step back. "Give it a try."

Sati stood up and looked down at her hands. Inside, she didn't feel any different; she couldn't tell if it had worked or not. Cautiously, she took a step forward and assumed a bending stance. Her hand trembled, hesitating to see if she truly had her bending back, but she stood firm and thrust her hand forward. A gust of wind erupted from her palm, blowing away everything in the alley, knocking barrels and crates over and rustling the laundry drying by windows. "I...I… I can airbend!" she squealed in delight. "I don't know how I could ever thank you!"

"Please, a good deed is its own reward," the man smiled from beneath his hood.

"I'll never forget this," Sati beamed happily. She gathered up her basket of produce and rushed to reunite with her friends.

Behind her, the man took off his hood and cast aside the cloak that covered him, revealing an old, yet extensive burn on his upper arm and shoulder. "Heh, be sure that you don't," he muttered with a wide, menacing grin before disappearing into the shadows.

* * *

"Where's Sati? She should be here by now," Rai muttered, tapping her foot impatiently.

"Weren't you with her?" Hiro asked Takumi.

"Yeah, but she moves quickly through the markets! Anyone could lose track of her with all those people," Takumi argued.

"Well if she doesn't show up soon, we're leaving without her!" Rai exclaimed, stomping her foot impatiently.

"Here I am!" All three looked up in time to see Sati jump down from a nearby rooftop and land between them with a cushioning gust of wind. "Sorry to keep you all waiting," she said with a wide smile.

"You just…" Rai started, staring at Sati with shocked wide eyes.

"You're airbending is back!" Takumi exclaimed happily, "But how?"

"Yes, how? Bloodbending effects don't just go away unless a bloodbender is there to undo it," Hiro said in a serious and suspicious tone.

"Well, while I was in the market, I met a bloodbender who offered to help! And now I've got my bending back!"

"Wait, hold on. A random bloodbending stranger offered his help and you just accepted it, no questions asked?" Rai asked.

"Yeah."

"What were you thinking? You can't just go accepting offers from strangers!"

"Why not? Not everyone has an ulterior motive like you think. We Air Nomads always help those in need without expecting anything in return!" Sati argued.

"Well, the whole world doesn't follow your Nomad ways, Sati! Out here in the real world away from your Nomad temples, people will stab each other in the back to get what they want! You don't even know who this person was or why they wanted to help you!"

"Are you so truly paranoid that everyone's out to get you that you won't rely on faith?"

"I HAD FAITH ONCE!" Rai suddenly shouted, shocking all three of them. "I had faith once," she repeated, quietly this time. "But like everything else I had, it was ripped away from me. I can't afford to give away my faith to others so blindly and maybe someday you'll understand why." Rai turned away, but stopped to look at Sati from the corner of her eye. "Perhaps I was wrong to place any faith in you. I can't trust someone with such naive and poor judgement."

"Rai, I…" Sati stepped forward, holding out her hand to reach for Rai, but the Avatar turned and walked away.

In the distance, high above the town entrance on a tree covered hill stood a large and proud komodo rhino, saddled and mounted by the same bloodbender with the burn on his arm. "Soon, my darling, you will be mine again, for good this time," he said, locking his gaze on the blonde girl. With that, he kicked the komodo rhino into a dash and steered the might beast away from the town and into the forest. He rode until nightfall until he reached a large camp filled with well-armed men, all of whom greeted him upon arriving.

"You're back, boss!" one of them greeted as the man dismounted and his komodo rhino was led away by another to the stables. "How'd it go?"

"Hah, perfectly. The little airbender bought that whole sob story you came up with. She ate that bullshit right up!" he bellowed in laughter. "Slave! Bring me a drink!" At his call, a young disheveled child in tattered robes appeared at his side with a cup, offering it up to him. The man took the cup and gulped down every last drop. With his thirst quenched, he tossed the cup to the ground, leaving the slave to fetch it from the ground.

"One more thing, boss. Manta's waiting for you in your tent."

"Manta? Good, I've been meaning to speak with him." Upon reaching the largest tent in the camp, the man brushed the two fabric curtains that made up the entrance and strolled in. At the center of the tent were two guards, keeping a third man bound and on his knees.

"What the hell is this all about, Goro!" the bound man shouted.

"What? No hello? You're certainly not being a very good guest, Manta," Goro said casually, sitting on the large throne-like chair situated in front of Manta.

"I don't understand. I did as you asked. I attacked the Nomad to provoke the slave!"

"I asked you to do no such thing! I was merely voicing possible scenarios of what I might do, not a definite plan. I've no use for a fighter who doesn't know how to use his ears."

"But I just thought that-"

"You're not here to think, Manta, you're here to obey. And because you decided to 'think' I had to go out, get my hands dirty and fix your fuckup!"

"My fu- But you wanted her friends to suffer first!" Manta argued, leaning forward slightly.

"I did! But by my hand and while she watches! But now you've robbed me of that first opportunity!" he shouted, sitting up from his chair and leaning down in front of Manta. Goro grabbed him by the back of his neck and held Manta's face close to his. "How did she look when you first saw her? You were wrong about the blonde hair though. I think I quite like it; makes her even more of a unique little flower. How did she react when she realized who you were? Did her face just contort and her nose scrunch up when she gets angry?" he asked.

"Well, she-"

"You see," Goro said, cutting Manta off, "I wouldn't have to ask these questions if you had just stayed out of my business! So you see why I'm extremely upset about this. Now, as leader, I do encourage my fellow bandits to come to me with their questions and concerns at any time and I will see them at my earliest convenience and give them each my time and attention. If any of them are worried that a decision of mine is not the wisest or most logical, then don't be afraid to speak up. Question me, but let me have the chance to convince you of my perspective and ease your doubts," he said, as the other bandits in the tent nodded in agreement to his speech. "I am nothing if not a tolerant leader open to the concerns of my men. However, there is one thing that I will not tolerate and that is someone getting in the way of me and MY PROPERTY!" Manta and even the other bandits flinched at the sudden volume of Goro's shouting. At the snap of his fingers, the two guards cut Manta free of his restraints and pulled him to his feet as Goro turned away for a moment. "Now, you got in my way with Rai once before and ended up scarring that beautiful face of hers. So, I will not tolerate a third infraction." Goro pulled out a dagger and tossed it to Manta's feet, urging him to pick it up. "As I do with anyone else who crosses me, I'll give you a fighting chance. If you can make one scratch, one tiny little scratch on me, I'll let you leave my company alive." Manta's eyes darted back and forth between Goro and the dagger at his feet. "Go on," Goro urged. Manta stood still for a moment before quickly reaching for the dagger and charging at Goro, hoping that his sudden movement would somehow catch the bandit leader off guard. However, before Manta could take another step, his body froze and he was lifted a few inches off the ground as he groaned in pain. "Aw, that's too bad. And you had such a good head start." The dagger slipped from Manta's hands and Goro effortlessly caught it by the handle in his. "When the day is over, Rai will be mine and I won't condone someone like you getting in my way and fucking it up!" With that, Goro plunged the dagger into Manta's neck, causing the thick crimson fluid to shoot out of his body like a fountain, drenching the dirt and Goro's hand in his blood. Manta's body twitched in response to the pain as he cried out, but with Goro still bending at him, he could do nothing. Eventually, the blood flow lessened and Manta's body went limp, at which point Goro released his hold on the man, dropping his body onto the blood-soaked dirt. "Toss him. And make sure everyone in the camp knows to leave Rai be. She is mine alone to claim."

* * *

 **Man, I'm glad to finally work through this block I'd been having. Huge shout out to my buddy Powershade117 for helping me with this chapter.** **And I don't know what it is, but I looooove writing the creepers. Manta was a ton of fun in a previous chapter and I'm only getting started with Goro!**

 **Next: Team Avatar arrives in the town where Takumi's family lives, but is the young boy ready to part ways with the Avatar?**


	13. Family

**Not much to say. Work just has me fucking exhausted. Covering for reception this week, so I'm doing two jobs and am just swamped. Because of that, I just don't have it in me to proofread this. Bad me, I know . Mistakes are my fault.**

* * *

After another day of riding, the four travellers finally arrived in the Fire Nation Capital City. They entered the smaller harbour town that was nearly overshadowed by the enormous volcanic crater above that housed the Royal City.

"So, where's this family of yours live?" Rai asked as they casually strolled into town.

"Hang on, I've got the address here somewhere," Takumi said, rummaging through his pockets and pulling out a folded piece of paper. He quickly ran over to one of the locals and inquired about the address. "He says it's just a few blocks north of the main square up ahead."

"You've never been to your own family's home?" Hiro asked.

"Travel is expensive and my mom and I weren't exactly swimming in money," Takumi remarked. They followed the local man's directions until Takumi found the matching house number. He stepped up to the door and hesitantly knocked on the door.

After a few seconds, a man with dark hair and yellow eyes like Takumi's answered. "Yes?" he asked, holding the door open half-way.

"Um, hi, are you Kou?" Takumi asked timidly.

"Yes, I am. And what's this abou- Wait a minute," the man, Kou, stopped. He opened the door the rest of the way and stepped forward, putting his face close to Takumi's, causing the boy to instinctively take a step back. "Takumi?"

"Y-yes," Takumi squeaked.

Suddenly, the man smiled widely and laughed loudly, taking Takumi into his arms and easily lifting the small boy up into the air while Takumi's friends exchanged confused looks. "I haven't seen you since you were this big!" Kou bellowed happily, setting Takumi down and gesturing about the size of a baby with his hands. "Aika, get out here! You'll never guess who's here!" At his call, a woman appeared in the doorway. "It's my sister's kid, Takumi!"

"Oh my goodness, look at how much you've grown! I can't even remember the last time we saw you!" the exclaimed, taking Takumi's face in her hands and examining him. "Oh and these are your friends?" she asked, noticing the others standing there just watching. "Please, please, come in, come in," she said, ushering everyone inside.

Everyone sat in their small living room around a coffee table as Aika brought in a tray of cookies and tea. "I'm sorry that you had to be on your own for when your mother died," Kou said sadly, gently patting Takumi's shoulder. "But hell, my sister loved you more than anything. I'm surprised she didn't ask me to help her with some of her bills, but well, we're not exactly dripping in spare funds here." Kou and Aika's house was rather big, but the interior was quite empty, as if piece of furniture and decorations had been removed and possibly sold.

"Yeah, mom was always a little too proud to ask someone else for help. She never wanted to be a burden to anyone. Almost reminds me of someone else I know," Takumi said, glancing at Rai.

"Well, you're welcome to stay here with us, Takumi. I'm sure it's what your mother would have wanted," Kou said with a smile. Takumi glanced at his friends and focused in on Rai. He knew from the beginning that this was supposed to be the end point: Rai escorting him to his family in the Fire Nation and then they'd part ways. But… now that they were finally here after everything they had to go through, he didn't want to leave them behind. "That is why you've come all this way, isn't it?" Kou pressed further as Takumi remained silent.

"Um…" Takumi hesitated to answer, looking to his friends. His eyes pleaded for something from them, but even he wasn't sure what it was he was looking to them for. What did he want them to say? That he had come here to live with them? Or that they had simply been passing through on their way to another destination?

"Yes, that is why we've come here," Rai finally spoke up, causing Hiro, Sati and especially Takumi to quickly glance over at her in shock.

"Rai…" Takumi whispered.

"I offered to escort Takumi here from Republic City. I figured a scrawny little kid like him wouldn't last a day on the road on his own."

"And will the three of you be staying in town as well?" Aika asked.

"No, we'll be on our way," Rai replied, standing up, followed quickly by Hiro and Sati.

"Aren't you going to at least say goodbye?" Sati asked.

Rai stopped just in front of the door at Sati's question and turned to face Takumi. She walked over to him and stood just one step away from him. Takumi looked up at her with those big hopeful eyes of his, as if begging her not to leave. However, all Rai muttered was, "Goodbye, Takumi." With that, Rai disappeared out the door, followed closely by Hiro, who said nothing. Sati lingered in front of the doorway, giving Takumi a sad look. He didn't see this however, as he was hanging his head sadly. Seeing this, Sati walked over to him and lifted his chin with her hand.

"I'm sure we'll visit," Sati said with a reassuring smile before wrapping Takumi in a tight bearhug.

Takumi returned the hug as tightly as he could and when they pulled away, he asked with a smile, "Take care of Rai, will you?"

"Of course," she smiled. "You take care of yourself, ok, Takumi?"

"I will." Before parting, Sati placed a gentle kiss on Takumi's forehead before following Rai and Hiro out the door.

Outside, Sati raced on an air scooter to catch up to Rai and Hiro, who continued strolling away from Takumi's aunt and uncle's house. "You're really not just going to leave him, are you?" Sati exclaimed, landing right in front of Rai and cutting off her path.

Rai stared at the airbender with her usual angry glare and replied nonchalantly, "What's it to you?"

"Look, I know you're still mad at me for trusting a complete stranger earlier, but… after everything you've been through with Takumi, that's the goodbye you give him?"

"Takumi knew from the very start how this was going to end before you ever joined up with us. If you're having such a hard time saying goodbye, maybe you should just stay here too," Rai said, attempting to push past Sati, who merely moved in her path again. "What?" Rai shouted this time, her patience wearing thin.

"You need to confront your feelings, Rai. You can't just bottle everything up or it'll just explode!"

"She doesn't have to do anything!" Hiro interjected.

"Oh, I'll get to you and your bottled up emotions in a second!" Sati assured him, confidently standing her ground. "I know you care about Takumi and there's no way that you'd just say goodbye like that and disappear from his life forever."

"Yes, I care about Takumi," Rai admitted. "Which is why leaving him here is the best thing for him."

"What? Why?"

"I lead a dangerous life and he's walked the line between life and death enough times. He's safer if he stays here."

Rai pushed past Sati, followed by Hiro, leaving Sati standing there, defeated. "But… safer doesn't mean happier. Can't we just… stay a few days? To make sure Takumi adjusts well before we leave for good?" Sati pleaded, running up to Rai again.

"Well, we do need to restock on supplies," Hiro mentioned.

"Yes! Yes, we need to restock! And Daisy is awfully tired from all that flying. I think all of our animal friends could use a nice day of rest!"

Rai rolled her eyes and sighed before firmly saying, "Fine, we'll stay the night. But we leave tomorrow."

That evening as Rai and Sati went through the market to replenish their food stocks, the airbender kept trying to get Rai to open up her feelings more, but as usual was met with a brick wall that was determined not to budge an inch. Hiro, meanwhile, stood outside a blacksmith, waiting for his broadswords to be sharpened. Suddenly, Hiro noticed Kou standing just outside the entrance to an alleyway. He was about to call over to the man, but then noticed Kou looking back and forth, as if checking to see that he wasn't followed. Hiro instinctively hid behind a pile of crates and watched as Kou hastily entered the alley. Hiro cocked his eyebrow in suspicion. He had tailed enough thugs and creeps enough to know when someone was up to something no good. And for a man who was recently reunited with his nephew, Kou looked exceptionally troubled.

"Here you go, all nice and sharp." Hiro was pulled from his thoughts as the blacksmith handed him back his sheathed broadswords. Taking his blades, Hiro stealthy entered the alley and spotted Kou disappear into a back entrance. Hiro slowly crept up to the door and peeked into the room through a window that was slightly cracked open. He managed to see Kou inside with another person, but couldn't get a good view through the tiny crack and he didn't want to push the window open further and risk alerting them to his presence.

"He showed up today, just like you said he would," Hiro heard Kou say, his speech littered with nervous stammers.

The hidden man handed Kou a paper. "Good, at sundown, bring him to this location at sundown and you'll get your money. You have an hour until sundown, so I suggest you hurry." Hiro quickly ducked into a hidden nook in the alley just in time to avoid Kou, who dashed out the building and back into the alley.

Once he was sure the coast was clear, Hiro emerged from his hiding spot. "He was definitely talking about Takumi… What is he planning?" When he exited the alley, he looked at the clock in a nearby plaza. An hour wasn't a lot of time to figure out what was going on, but it certainly was enough time to make sure Takumi's so-called family had no ill intentions with him. He looked around and saw Rai and Sati nowhere near him and decided to proceed without them. An hour wasn't as big of a window of time as one might think and he didn't want to risk missing Kou, Aika and Takumi when they left their house.

* * *

"Where are we going?" Takumi asked, as Kou and Aika shut the door to their house behind them.

"We thought it would be fun if we showed you around town a little more!" Aika said excitedly with a smile.

"Oh, ok, yeah I guess that would be fun," Takumi sighed as his eyes drooped sadly.

Noticing this, Aika set her hand gently on his shoulder. "I know it must hurt to say goodbye to your friends, but I think you'll be really happy here, Takumi."

Even though her words did little to console him, he at least appreciated the gesture and smiled back at her. "Thanks… What's this place?" he asked as Aika and Kou led him into a small, enclosed garden.

"This is the Yat Sun park. Your mother and I used to come here a lot when we were kids. The signs say not to feed the animals, but we would always sneak in bread anyway," Kou whispered with a smile.

As they entered, Takumi gasped at the sight of the beautiful park. The large pond in the center had pink flower petals from the nearby cherry blossom trees floating on the surface. Flowers decorated the edges of the pathway, at the end of which stood a large, decorative red and gold pavilion. "Wow," he whispered in awe as he made his way to the pavilion to get a better look at the whole pond and the rest of the park. Aika and Kou slowly followed as they looked around suspiciously, noticing two black suited men ushering other park-goers off the premises. Takumi turned around and just noticed the odd behaviour. "What's going on?" he asked.

Suddenly, Aika and Kou's expression shifted to sadness and guilt as Aika whispered, "I'm so sorry, Takumi, but we wouldn't be doing this if we weren't desperate."

Takumi turned his head when he heard footsteps coming from the path to their right as a tall, bearded man in a suit with his hair combed back stepped out. Takumi let out a faint, shocked gasp from between his lips as he instinctively took a step back. "Dad…" he said.

His father, Peng, said nothing. Instead, he turned to Aika and Kou and handed them a suitcase. The couple opened the suitcase and gasped in amazement at the sight of the large number of bills inside. "For your troubles," he said simply, before turning to finally address Takumi, "Hello Takumi."

"You're not even going to acknowledge me as your son?" Takumi cried, glaring angrily at the man who was his father.

"You've become quite a thorn in my side, do you know that?" Peng asked, maintaining a straight and intimidating posture as he spoke.

"Thorn in your side? All I ever wanted to be was your son! And you send thugs and assassins to kill me!"

"Wait, you did what?" Kou cried in shock.

"This doesn't concern you. Leave!" Peng ordered.

"Y-you told us you were trying to contact and meet with him after my sister died. Why would you try to have your own son killed?" Kou asked.

"Because if word got out that I had a bastard son, my marriage and my political career would be ruined. I can't have that happening." At the snap of his fingers, the two suited men who emptied the park earlier appeared at Peng's side. One of them advanced on Takumi and roughly seized him by the arm.

"Hey!" Takumi shouted, instinctively fighting back and trying to pull his arm free, but to no avail.

"What are you going to do with him?" Aika cried, stepping forward, but the other suited man stood in her way.

"That's none of your concern. Escort them from the premises; they have no further business here." Peng waved his hand as his henchman easily dragged Aika and Kou away towards the park entrance. "This time, I'm going to make sure that you don't get in my way," Peng whispered darkly, towering over Takumi as he spoke.

Suddenly, Peng was swiftly kicked right in his face as Hiro swung down from the top of the pavilion. Peng fell back onto the ground, clutching his bleeding nose. Before the henchman holding Takumi could react, Hiro grabbed his wrist, freeing Takumi from his hold and spun the man around and pushed him on the railing of the pavilion while pinning his arm to his back.

"H-Hiro?" Takumi cried in shock. "What are you doing here?"

"Saving your ass, that's what," he replied, lifting the pinned henchman over the railing and plummeting into the pond below. Just then, the second henchman appeared behind Hiro and wrapped both his arms around the young swordsman's neck. Hiro quickly reacted and lifted his legs up, running them up one of the pavilion pillars so that he jumped over the henchmen and landed behind him. Hiro delivered a swift kick to his lower back, sending him over the railing as well to land in the pond with his comrade. With them out of the way, Hiro turned to their boss, who still clutched his bleeding face. Hiro rolled his eyes and scoffed. This was clearly a man who had never been punched in the face before. In a single stroke, he drew his broadswords and held them across Peng's throat in an X formation while pinning the frightened man to the ground. If the swords were any closer to Peng's skin, the sharp blades would surely slice his flesh open or threaten to decapitate him in one swift movement. "I could kill you for this. It'd remove many a problem and make my life a hell of a lot easier…" Hiro said, truly entertaining the idea as Peng stared up at him with wide, fearful eyes. "But I won't. If you think this kid is any threat to you," he said, gesturing over to Takumi with a nod of his head, "then you're a bigger idiot than even I can give you credit for. He has no political pull or any evidence in his favour and what he has is circumstantial, at best. Listen to me carefully now because I will only say this once: you need to stop this now. Stay out of his life," Hiro said in a serious tone, glancing at Takumi as he spoke, "and he'll stay out of yours." Hiro pulled away from Peng and sheathed his swords. He took a few steps back and just as Peng pushed himself off the wall to step forward and open his mouth to protest Hiro's words, the swordsman jumped up and spun around, delivering a swift kick to Peng's jaw and knocking the man unconscious. Hiro then turned to address Takumi's aunt and uncle, who continued to cower off to the side, staring at the long-haired boy with wide, shocked eyes. "And you two...You disgust me. No one would miss a pair of worthless lowlifes like you," he said, reaching for his swords, prompting the terrified couple to yelp in fear and cling to each other tightly. "But it's not my place to decide your fate. Hiro lowered his arm and looked at Takumi. "What say you, Takumi? You saw how much family means to them. Should I let them live? Do they deserve their worthless lives?

"No! Don't kill them!" Takumi interjected, coming between Hiro and his aunt and uncle.

"So quick to defend those who betrayed you, sold you out for money…"

"We didn't know what Peng was going to do to him, we swear!" Kou exclaimed fearfully as he and his wife clung to each other tightly.

"And your ignorance makes it ok?" Hiro snapped before turning back to Takumi. "Give me a good reason why I shouldn't just kill them now. Would you honestly miss an aunt and uncle who so quickly sold you out for money?"

"Maybe they do deserve it, but…" Takumi started, turning his head to look at his so-called family with sad eyes. "It's not my place to decide, it's not anyone's place."

Hiro stood there, silently taking in Takumi's answer before finally speaking. "This once," he said, holding up his index finger, "I will abide by your wishes. But I know there is more to it that it simply 'not being your place'. Takumi began to speak, but Hiro stopped him. "Don't explain it to me," Hiro pointed at Takumi's family, "Explain it to them. Make sure they know why they get to walk away from this."

Takumi hesitantly turned to face his aunt and uncle, the very same couple that had just recently welcomed him into their home only to sell him out to his death. "P-please don't kill us Takumi. We needed the money!" Kou begged desperately.

"I swear, we only thought he wanted to meet with you! We didn't know what he really wanted to do with you!" Aika pleaded next.

With a dry throat and voice devoid of emotion. "I believe you, I believe that you thought no harm would come to me but family are supposed to be the people you can count on; you don't sell out family, you don't betray family. You're not worth the effort to hate or want dead. I've...I've never wished death upon anyone, and I'm not about to start now." Takumi then turned to address his still unconscious father. "How could I ever be a threat to your position? You're not my family any more, none of you are. Let's go, Hiro." Takumi turned around and stormed away, barely holding in his pain.

Hiro lingered for a moment to give the couple a vicious glare. "When the oaf wakes up, tell him that if he comes after us again, I won't stay my hand so easily." As he caught up to Takumi, Hiro spoke, "We'll swing by their place and pick up your things and Kiwi," Hiro said.

"Y-you mean I'm going back with you guys?" he asked, surprised.

"Well, where else are you going to?" Hiro remarked.

With a relieved sigh and smile on his face, Takumi muttered, "Thanks."

"Don't mention it, kid," Hiro replied nonchalantly.

"Don't mention it?! You saved my life back there, even when you didn't have to. You could have just left me and move on with Rai and Sati, but you didn't. I should be nothing but grateful, and I am! But…"

"But what?" Hiro pushed.

"I thought you didn't like me."

"I don't. You have an unbearably naive of a view of the world that makes you too gullible and trusting. You think that everyone's problems would be solved if we were all just nice to each other. I swear if you didn't have the most uncanny luck out of anyone I've known, I bet you would have gotten yourself killed a long time ago." Takumi was about to open his mouth and protest Hiro's claim, but quickly recalled all the times his life had almost met its end were it not for someone's timely intervention. "As the Blue Spirit, I always strived to be a guardian of the innocent. What kind of a guardian would I be if I didn't act when an innocent life was in danger? Just because I don't like you doesn't mean I should just turn my back on you."

"I… I guess you have a point there." Takumi sighed. "Look, I'm-"

"Don't." Hiro cut the boy off. "No apologies. I don't do those very well. Best to just sweep it under the rug and move on. You don't apologize to me and keep your foolish morals in that head of yours," he lightly poked Takumi's forehead through his headband as he spoke, "and I'll make sure you live to spread those morals of yours to those that care to listen. Deal?" Hiro asked, extending out his hand.

Takumi chuckled briefly before shaking Hiro's hand, "Fine, you have a deal, Hiro." After retrieving his belongings and Kiwi from his aunt and uncle's home, the two boys headed back to the small inn at the edge of town they had been staying at. When the pair entered the large room they had rented out for the night, Sati quickly stood up at the sight of Takumi.

"You're back!" she exclaimed, rushing up to him and lifting him up into a tight hug. "What happened? Aren't you staying with your aunt and uncle from now on?"

"It turns out they weren't exactly the most trustworthy of people," Hiro explained. "His father was waiting there for him."

"Your father?" Rai suddenly sat up and marched over to the two boys. "What happened?"

"I took care of the problem," Hiro replied.

"You did scare him real good. I don't think my dad should be bothering us again any time soon," Takumi chuckled. He looked up at Rai, waiting for her to say something about him being back. However, all she did was pat him on the head and return to what she was doing before.

* * *

 **Next chapter - Fall: Team Avatar busts a slave ring and frees their captives. But Rai is shocked when she comes face to face with their leader, Ryota.**


	14. Shot Through the Heart

**I have been waiting a long time to get to this chapter. Once I had the idea for it... I just had to do it. Just... just see for yourself guys. Hope you enjoy it.**

* * *

"You're staying," Rai said firmly.

"We most certainly are not!" Takumi argued. "The last time you charged into an enemy stronghold on your own, it blew up!"

"All the more reason for you two to remain behind. And that explosion was planned, by the way."

"Well, how come he gets to go?" the boy cried, gesturing to Hiro, who was donning his Blue Spirit outfit.

"Because he knows how to fight AND he knows how to deal with slavers. I don't have to spend half my time worrying about him or get an earful of how I should spare their lives."

"But we can help!" Takumi continued protesting as Sati came up to his side.

"And you know that even if you tell us to stay here, we'll probably just disobey you anyway," she said with her usual grin.

Rai growled under her breath as she sharpened blades, readying them for battle. These two were bordering on becoming a more insufferable headache to her than they already were. "Ugh, fine!" she reluctantly agreed. "I guess having you in range is better than having you sneak in by yourself. But if trouble starts, you run. Got it?"

"Got it," Takumi answered, readying his bow and quiver of arrows.

As night fell, the four of them crept along a hill overlooking a small campsite located just outside a mountainside cave. "Doesn't look like much," Sati commented, noticing only a few armed men stationed around the camp.

"It never does. It'll draw too much suspicion otherwise," Hiro noted. "But this should be one of the slaver cells I've been tracking."

"And what about Ryota?" Rai asked.

"He's crafty and hard to track. I don't even know what he looks like. All I know is that he's relatively new to the slave trade, but he's good. And when I say good, I mean bad," Hiro explained.

"How'd someone so new get so good at enslaving people?" Takumi asked.

"My guess is he learned from the ground up," Hiro replied.

"You mean this Ryota used to be a slave?" Sati asked.

"It's just something I've heard other slavers say. No way to confirm it without actually finding Ryota, which is hard enough already. But the story goes that Ryota was originally enslaved as a kid, but nobody bought him, so the slavers decided to put him to their work. Turns out, having started out as one made him pretty good at enslaving others."

"And he's ok with enslaving more children even after what he went through?" Sati exclaimed in shock.

"I've seen slaves willing to sell out their own friends if it meant freedom. Not everyone has a heart of gold," Hiro said.

"As you keep reminding us," Sati muttered.

"Former slave or not, he's a slaver now. And there's only one thing slavers deserve," Rai said, narrowing her eyes viciously.

"So what's the plan then?" Takumi asked.

"They'll be hiding their slaves in there," Hiro said, pointing to the cave.

"Behind a solid wall of rock, just in case anyone too curious wanders by, then they go from a party of slavers and their merchandise to a band of weary travellers that nobody looks at twice," Rai added.

"How many do you think are in there?" Takumi asked.

"No way to know right now. Could be as few as three, as many as twenty," she answered. "The priority will be to get them away safely."

"I can draw away most of the slavers so you can slip into the cave," said Hiro.

"What about the guy guarding the entrance to the cave?" Takumi asked.

"Don't worry about him," Rai said. While Rai, Takumi and Sati hid in the bushes, Hiro made his way around to the other side of the camp. A twig snapped, instantly drawing the attention of the slavers. The one guarding the entrance of the cave nudged his head towards the sound, signalling his four companions settled in the camp to investigate it. Once the others were gone, the lone slaver heard a small rock tumble down the side of the mountain. He furrowed his brow in curiosity and moved in closer to investigate. Just then, Rai came up from behind him and sliced his thigh with her blade. He fell to his knee and opened his mouth to cry out in pain, but Rai quickly moved in front of him, covered his mouth with her hand and sliced her blade across his throat. The slaver's eyes rolled up as he went limp and fell to the ground. When she was done, Takumi and Sati stood there, staring at her in shock with their jaws open wide. "Don't give me that look," she spat, "You both know this isn't exactly new behaviour." Sati and Takumi exchanged looks as Rai moved past them and into the cave. She reached the solid rock wall inside and placed her palms on it. With a swift thrust of her arm downward, the rock wall lowered, revealing the rest of the cave. It was too dark to see clearly, but they could hear the quiet whimpers of children and metal clanking of chains moving.

Just then, a light came up behind them, illuminating the cave. All three of them quickly turned around, ready to fight, but relaxed when they saw that it was Hiro with a small flame in his hand and a bloody sword in the other. "Relax, it's just me. How many are there?" he asked, sheathing his sword and walking further into cave and illuminating it and several children, who flinched and cowered in fear.

"Looks like about a dozen," Rai said, doing a quick count.

"Oh, the poor children," Sati said with a sad frown. She bent down onto one knee and held out her hand to a pair of children chained to the wall by their ankles. The pair leaned further into a cave walls away from her and held onto each other tightly, the old boy wrapping his arms around the younger girl as if he were trying to protect her. "I'm not going to hurt you. We're here to help," she said with a smile. The boy looked up at Sati's bright blue eyes and sincere smile. Just as he hesitantly reached his head out to her welcoming one, the shackle around his ankle suddenly snapped open, along with the shackles on every other child's ankle.

"We don't have much time. We need to get moving," Rai said after metal bending the shackles open. The children quickly stood up, all the while whispering to each other quietly.

"What the hell's going on here? Where is everyone?" they heard a man shout from outside the cave.

"Shit," Rai cursed, quickly raising the rock wall to seal the entrance to the cave once more.

"Why did you do that?" Takumi cried.

"Those slavers weren't alone. I should have accounted for that," she muttered to herself, "but the point is now we can't go out the way we came. It doesn't matter how many of them are there, with this many kids, someone'll get caught in the crossfire."

"So, what do we do then?" Sati asked, gently holding two of the frightened children close to her as they desperately clung to her leg in fear. Rai didn't answer and instead moved to the other end of the cave. She took a wide stance and thrust her fist forward, pushing out the rocks and forming an exit down the other side.

"You three take the kids out that exit and get them to the nearest city," Rai said.

"What about you?" Takumi asked in concern.

"I'll stay behind and keep the slavers from following you. I'll keep them busy long enough for you to get away."

"But Rai-" the young boy began to protest.

"But nothing, Takumi. The rest of you need to go with them. They can't protect themselves if some slavers slip past me and catch up to you. Hiro can hold off any ones that do, but they'll still need someone to take care of them until they get somewhere safe."

"But-"

"I don't matter, Takumi, they do," she said firmly. Takumi still looked at her with his worried expression, so she lay a firm, but gentle hand on his shoulder and said reassuringly, "I'll be fine. Don't worry."

Takumi sighed in defeat, knowing that she wouldn't be swayed, "Ok…"

Rai made her way back to the entrance of the cave, blocked by the wall she had raised. "You should get moving. You'll need every second you can get to get ahead," she said. Takumi and Hiro simultaneously nodded in agreement as Sati tenderly urged the children ahead and pulled out her sky bison whistle.

Rai raised another wall between her and the rest of the cave, leaving herself between the two rock walls. She placed her hand against the first wall, feeling the vibrations of the earth through them. Rai counted at least eight men in total and judging by the low rumbling she heard, they had transportation. She waited until one of them got close before thrusting her hand straight through the wall and grabbing the slaver by his collar. Completely taken by surprise, he had no time to react as Rai pulled him by the collar and slammed his face into the rock, knocking him out as the wall crumbled to bits. Rai tore through the remainder of the wall, coming face to face with the group of slavers on the other side.

"What happened to our slaves?" one of them cried.

"They're not yours to begin with!" Rai shouted, thrusting her hand into the ground and liquifying the earth beneath the slaver and submerging him up to his neck. She spotted the parked car and slammed her foot into the ground, causing a pillar of earth to raise up from beneath the car, tipping it over.

"Get her!" one of them shouted.

Rai grinned in response and raised the earth beneath her, surfing along the moving earth beneath her feet. "That's right, follow the leader," she muttered. She cast a quick look over her shoulder and smirked to see the slavers pursuing her with their remaining vehicles. Over the other side of the mountain, she could just make out the large, black shape of an sky bison taking off. Rai came to a halt as the earth she had been riding on top of subsided. She saw the lights of the slavers' remaining vehicles, mostly motorcycles, getting closer. Rai lingered for a moment, long enough for them to spot her before darting into the woods. She stopped when she reached an open cliffside overlooking a river below. Rai peered down to the raging rapids, "I can make that," she said confidently. Even if her waterbending was sub par, she could cushion her fall with airbending and land safely in the water below. Hearing the slavers catch up to her, Rai turned around, ready to face them and take down as many as she could before she could make her timely escape. She had to occupy their time as long as she possibly could.

"She'll fetch a fine price," one of the slavers snickered, holding up a length of chain in his hands.

Rai narrowed her eyes at the metal chain angrily and uttered, "I wore chains once. Your metal will never touch my skin again." She raised her hand, causing the chain to come to life and wrap tightly around the slaver's neck. She lifted him into the air as the slaver clawed at the chain, trying to loosen it as he desperately gasped for breath. One of the slavers quickly lunged towards her, but she easily stepped to the side and kicked her heel into the ground, sprouting a pillar that kicked the charging slaver over the cliffside and screaming into the river below. Rai dropped the chain-wrapped slaver to the ground, dead. Another thrust his fist forward, shooting fire at her, but Rai quickly raised an earth shield to protect herself before kicking the wall with her foot, breaking it into pieces and hurtling them towards the slavers, knocking each one in the stomach and knocking them back. One by one, they got up and charged at Rai again, only to knocked back. She stabbed two in the stomach in quick succession before snapping the neck of a third. She had taken out four, but there were still five standing before her. Now would have been as good a time as any. The others would have gotten far away enough with the children, so she had no more reason to occupy these scum any longer. Rai took a step back towards the edge of the cliff. The remaining slavers grinned and snickered, thinking that they had her on the run.

"Enough!" a voice called out, as the attacking slavers instantly stopped in their tracks. Rai stopped too, momentarily startled by the sudden arrival of reinforcements. It didn't matter though. She was ready to jump into the river down below and make her escape, until one of the slavers said something that made her stop.

"But Ryota," one of the slavers began protesting.

Ryota… the young, prodigious slaver she had heard so much about from Hiro and those letters from the bandit fortress they had blown up. It didn't matter to her who this Ryota was. He may have supposedly started out as a slave like she and so many others had, but he made his own bed when he signed on with them and chose to continue their work. All that did matter was that he was a big and important figure in the slave trade and if she could take him out, that'd be a big dent in the industry. That, and killing slavers was one of her favorite things.

"I said enough." The slavers parted, allowing their leader to emerge as Rai heard the sound of a bowstring tightening, indicating an arrow had been drawn.

Rai took a combat stance, ready to face this Ryota she had heard so much about and eliminate him, but when he emerged, her eyes flew wide in shock as she gasped under her breath. Her body froze and her breathing became laboured and uneven as she watched the young boy - not a man like she had expected - stand before her. It may have been dark, but it was no mistake who the young man in front of her was. The messy dark hair, bright green eyes that once looked up at her in joy, and the last time she saw them, fear. Her throat went dry and coarse and when she finally found the will to speak, all she could manage to let out was a quiet whisper of shock and confusion, "Ara… Arata?"

The boy with the bow standing opposite to her simply smirked and aimed the arrow right at her. "Hey sis," he said with a malicious smile.

"Arat-" She stepped towards the boy, a smile forming across her face. For the first time in years, hope and joy filled her heart at seeing him alive and well. Memories flooded her mind, old and happy ones, followed quickly by the sad ones as she was forcibly dragged away from him all those years ago. She reached out towards him when suddenly, her breath hitched as she felt something strike her chest. The force of the impact made her step back and her chest began to sting. She slowly cast her eyes down to see an arrow in her chest as her hair tie jostled loose, freeing her thick blond locks around her face and over her eyes. She had been looking right at him the entire time, but didn't even seem him release his arrow. She looked up in time to see Arata nock a second arrow and aim it at her again. Her limbs felt sluggish and heavy like invisible weights and chains were weighing her down. She couldn't move as the second arrow struck her in the shoulder. This time, the impact knocked her back further towards the edge of the cliff. Eyes still wide in shock and unable to speak, legs gave out from beneath her and she fell to her knees in front of the slavers as blood began seeping through her clothes, dyeing her bright yellow floral shirt a dark crimson. Rai struggled to focus; it felt like a million things were happening all at once: the pain in her chest, her trouble breathing and the sheer shock of seeing him again. Her vision began to blur as all the noises around her suddenly went quiet and all she could hear was a sharp ringing tone. Ryota walked up to Rai as she kneeled on the very edge of the cliff. Green eyes locked with an identical pair as Rai weakly and shakily lifted her head. "Ara…ta," she whispered weakly.

Ryota bent down, squatting in front of her while supporting himself on his bow. His expression softened briefly as he locked eyes with the dying girl, brushing aside the long blond bangs that clung to her sweat drenched forehead before a smirked appeared on his face. He leaned in and whispered to her, "Arata died a long time ago. The name's Ryota now." When he stood up, Rai tried to speak and reach for him, but she couldn't feel her arms and her throat was so coarse and dry that she barely managed choke out a sound. Ryota looked down at her one last time as tears slowly formed around Rai's eyes. Still with that smirk on his face, he delivered a swift and firm kick with his foot against Rai's other shoulder, sending her over the cliffside and into the river below.

Silently from the bushes several feet away, Takumi and Hiro had just caught up in time to see Rai fall over the cliffside with two arrows in her chest. Takumi stared at the scene before him in utter shock as he cried out her name, alerting Ryota and the slavers to their presence as Takumi burst from the bushes and ran towards the edge of the cliff. Hiro quickly reached out and grabbed onto Takumi, wrapping either arm around Takumi's waist and shoulders, pulling him back as the boy desperately struggled against his grip, shouting at Hiro to let him go. Hiro's eyes locked with the cliffside as well and he knew how much he wanted to rush over and it was tearing him apart to pull Takumi away.

The slavers quickly drew their weapons and prepared to charge, but Ryota held his arm up, signalling for them to halt. "Shouldn't we go after 'em, boss?" one of the slavers asked.

Ryota raised his chin and smirked at the sight of Hiro forcibly dragging the distraught Takumi away as they fled on Griffith. "No, there's nothing left for them now. We're done here," he said, casting one last glance down the cliff to the rapidly flowing river below.

"But the slaves..."

Ryota ignored his lacky for a second as he took in the situation. When he looked up, he noticed the unmistakable shape of a flying bison. His first impulse was to growl with fury, but he stepped back and turned to his men with a sigh. "Those slaves are long gone. There's no point in going after them now," he said, sheathing his bow. "Come on lads. I hear there's another nearby village that's ripe for the plunder." There was some excited murmuring before Ryota continued, "I was going to leave them be, at least until after we dealt with that last shipment. But it seems like our timetable just skipped ahead. Move out, men. We've hit a setback, but we're still in business." His men all cheered and turned to leave. Ryota followed closely behind them, but not before shooting the cliff a sideways glance.

* * *

 **Did I just do that? Did I just kill my main character?**

 **Yeah, yeah I did. And I love it XP**

 **ANYWAY...**

 **Next chapter: Takumi, Sati and Hiro try to figure out what to do and where to go in the wake of Rai's death.**


	15. Picking Up the Pieces

**Man, I got so distracted by Voltron coming out that I kinda completely forgot about my stories XD**

 **Anyway, it's a bit short, but hopefully it'll be enough to hold you guys until the next chapter :)**

* * *

Hiro and Takumi rode on Griffith in silence, the only sounds being the trotting of the puma goat's hooves on the dirt and the quick whistling of the wind as they rushed past trees and bushes. By now, Takumi had stopped fighting against Hiro's grip and sat limply on Griffith's saddle, supported only by one of Hiro's arm. He couldn't purge the sight of it from his mind, Rai falling over the edge of that cliff with two arrows in her chest and her floral gold tunic dyed crimson red with her blood. Every fibre of his being, every bit of his very soul cried out at once. So many emotions flooded and consumed him at once: pain, fear, heartbreak and then anger, anger at someone doing that to his friend, anger towards the one who did it and anger towards the one who pulled him away from it all. But now, he just felt numb. He was so completely disconnected that he hadn't noticed them arriving in the town that they had fled to with the rescued slaves.

Sati, who had remained behind to help the local authorities sort through and take care of the children they rescued while the boys had gone back to retrieve Rai, ran up to greet them. The smile that was always on her face, suddenly disappeared when she noticed a certain blonde was absent. "Wh-where's Rai?" she asked. Hiro climbed off Griffith's saddle while Takumi merely slid off, hanging his head low. Seeing this, Sati's eyebrows furrowed in worry as she asked them once more, "Hiro, Takumi, where's Rai?"

Hiro shook his head sadly and uttered, "She's gone."

"Wh-what do you mean 'she's gone'?" Sati asked, desperately looking for clarification while at the same time dreading their answer.

"I mean, she's gone. Rai's dead," he said, devoid of emotion.

"No!" Takumi cried out, prompting Sati and Hiro to sharply turn around. "She's not dead!" the boy shouted again, running up to Hiro with his fist raised high. However, Hiro quickly caught Takumi's wrist with his hand. The boy raised his other hand in response, but Hiro easily grabbed it as well. Takumi tried with all his might to push against Hiro's strength, but the vigilante was just bigger and stronger than him. "She's not dead…" he whispered tearfully, as if believing that if he kept repeating it enough, it would be true.

"I know it hurts," Hiro said, doing his best to sympathize with the boy. "But you have to let her go. She's gone." Takumi ceased his struggling and Hiro released his grip on the boy, causing him to fall to his knees as tears flowed down his cheeks and onto the stone road.

Sati quickly went to his side and took the sobbing boy in her arms, trying to comfort him as best she could. The airbender looked up at Hiro with sad and fearful eyes. "Are you sure?"

Hiro clenched his fists angrily and kept his back turned to Sati. "We saw it with our own eyes. She took two arrows to the chest and fell into the river below the gorge."

"Is there any way she could have survived?" Sati asked hopefully while still consoling Takumi.

"Even if she managed to survive a fall of that height, she was shot in the chest twice, Sati," Hiro emphasized, shaking his head sadly. "The Avatar may be resilient, but they're not invincible."

"What do we do now?" Sati asked, just barely holding back her own tears, while looking up to Hiro for direction.

Hiro didn't give her an answer and later that night, the trio gathered in the room they had rented at an inn. None of them knew what to do and none of them knew what to say. More or less, Rai was their leader, the one they looked to for direction… and now she was gone. Without her, none of them knew what to do or where to go.

The most powerful being in the world murdered, just like that.

"I still can't believe it," Sati muttered, hugging her knees to her chest as she sat in a chair. "All these years people have been searching for the Avatar, trying to find her… and now she's gone," she whispered tearfully. "No one else will ever know she existed, who she was, how she lived… how she might have shaped the world. Hiro," Sati turned to Hiro, who began putting on his black vigilante outfit while Takumi sat in the corner of the room in complete silence. "What do we do now?" she asked again. "Sh-should we try and find the next Avatar?" Sati asked, completely unsure of her own question.

Hiro finished dressing and held his blades up, inspecting them as they shined in the light, before sheathing them on his back "It wouldn't be the same; it wouldn't be Rai. You… do whatever you want. I know what I'm going to do."

"And what's that?" Sati asked, quickly standing up.

Sheathing his blades, Hiro replied, "I'm going to find every last one of those slavers and I'm going to kill them."

"Hiro, that isn't going to bring Rai back."

"Don't you think I know that!" Hiro snapped. "I didn't start living this life in an effort to bring my family back and I'm not doing this to try and bring her back. I'm doing it to avenge her."

"That's not going to accomplish anything, Hiro."

"It sure as hell will make me feel better knowing that the ones who took her from me will be pushing up daisies… No offence to Daisy."

Sati straightened her back and looked at Hiro with a mix of disappointment and horror. "You sound just like her," she said in an upsetting tone.

Though, Hiro took it as a compliment, responding with a satisfied and determined smirk while remarking, "Good."

"You're going to get yourself killed, Hiro. There's only one of you and tons of them!"

"I've faced worse odds before," he said confidently.

"You can't do this," Sati insisted.

"You know, I would have thought you'd learn this from Rai, but former slaves like us don't like being ordered around. You can do whatever you want, Sati, just don't get in the way of what I want." As Hiro made his way to the door to leave, Sati quickly stepped between him and the door with her arms spread out. "Move," Hiro glared angrily.

"You can't do this," Sati repeated, "Rai wouldn't want this."

Hiro scoffed, "Of course she would! This is exactly what she would want: retribution! That's what Rai always worked for! Getting justice for those who were denied it! Don't presume to know what Rai would have wanted. You didn't know her like I did, you barely knew her at all!"

"That doesn't mean I didn't want what was best for her!" Sati argued.

"Heh, what's best for her? All you ever wanted from her to was become your messiah, your saviour!" he yelled, jabbing Sati's shoulder with his index finger as he spoke. "Newsflash Sati, people aren't always concerned about what other people think is best for them! Sometimes, people do things because it's what they want for themselves, because it's what they feel in their gut. And if you won't honor Rai's memory and get her the vengeance she deserves, then I will."

"Stop it, both of you!" Takumi suddenly shouted, finally speaking up for the first time that night. "I can't believe you two, how quickly you're just giving up on her!"

Hiro and Sati exchanged worried looks before the vigilante sighed in disappointment, "Rai is dead, Takumi. Clinging to her like this now is just going to drag you down further to depths you might not come back from. I've been there."

"No, no she's not. She's alive! I know it!" Takumi shouted with fierce passion and determination.

"Takumi, enough! We both saw the same thing. Avatar or not, no one could survive that."

"Rai could, Rai did. She's strong," Takumi declared. "And if you don't think she survived, then you didn't care about her like I do!"

Suddenly, Hiro delivered a swift punch to Takumi's jaw, knocking the boy onto the floor. "Don't you dare," Hiro muttered before raising his voice and shouting loudly, "Don't you ever dare insinuate that I didn't care for her! I've always loved her! She was the light in my life and now my life is that much darker without her in it. This whole world is that much darker without her; everyone's life is darker now for not having known her. Everyone deals with pain and trauma in their own way, but denial just makes it worse. Trust me, I know. I spent years trying to forget what happened to me and all it did was drive me crazy. I only started to think clearly once I accepted what happened to me and moved on. I know you've built up this idea in your head of Rai being invincible, but it's time to be realistic, Takumi. Nobody thinks someone they love will die until it happens. Rai may be gone, but I won't let what she stood for die too."

Takumi quickly got back up on his feet and stood opposite to Hiro with broad shoulders and puffed up chest. "You might not believe, but I do! I know she's alive!" Takumi shouted, running past Hiro and Sati to the door. He lingered for a moment after opening it and turned his head to say one more thing, "I can't believe you both would just give up so easily." With that, he exited the room and slammed the door shut.

The young archer angrily marched outside the inn and kicked a few small pebbles as he reached the back of the inn where their animals slept peacefully under the starry sky. Still feeling unsatisfied with kicking the small rocks, Takumi tried kicking one of the bigger ones, only to stub his toes right against the solid stone. "Ow!" he hissed, grabbing his foot while hopping on the other. As the pain died down, Takumi noticed Haku awake and away from the other sleeping animals. The eel hound sat on the grass and stared up at the moon and stars above as Takumi stood beside him. "You don't really think she's gone, do you?" he asked the noble beast. He wasn't sure if he was genuinely asking the lizard or if he was just looking for some reassurance. Either way, now more than ever Takumi wished Haku could talk. Haku stood up and nuzzled Takumi's shoulder while letting out a sad groan. Takumi hugged the lizard's head affectionately before the beast pulled back and began walking away.

"W-wait!" Takumi cried, running up and standing in front of Haku. "You still think she's alive, don't you? Somewhere out there…" He wasn't sure what to make of the look of longing the eel hound cast in the distance, but it was mildly reassuring. "Well, do you have to go it alone?" he smiled at Haku as he pat the lizard's large front leg.

Haku responded by pointing to the inn with his nose and gesturing back to Takumi with a gentle push with his snout on the boy's chest. He then walked around Takumi and gently nudged him back towards the inn with his head against the boy's back.

"Oh, no you don't, Haku. You're not getting rid of me that easily." Before Haku could react, Takumi snagged one of the straps of Haku's saddle and hoisted himself up. Haku flinched at this, but Takumi spoke quickly in a calm, yet firm tone. "I'm not giving up on her that easily either, big guy. And if you're going to search for her, then I'm coming with you."

Haku grabbed Takumi by his shirt and plopped him back on the ground, gesturing once more to the inn where his comrades resided, trying to convey that he was needed here

"But, Haku, if she is out there, then we have to find her." Takumi took a moment to look into the sad eyes of Haku and gasped, "You're not even sure that you'll find her, are you? That's why you want me to stay," the boy realized sadly.

Haku exhaled and pressed his head against Takumi's chest. The boy's eyes teared up a bit before he grabbed Haku's head in a tight hug once more. When they pulled away, Takumi turned to look at the inn. "I understand. They've given up hope and I haven't. That's why you want me to stay, right?" Takumi wiped away the forming tears. "Then you do what you have to do, big guy. I'll keep the search strong too. If Rai's as stubborn as you are, which I know she is...then I know she's out there somewhere."

Haku licked Takumi one last time before turning away and dashing off.

Takumi watched as the eel hound disappeared into the distance and whispered to himself with great determination, "I'll never give up, never…" Haku would find Rai and bring her back to them and it was Takumi's job to keep the hope alive.

* * *

Downriver, the powerful stream's rapids had split off into a more peaceful and quiet stream. On the shore lay an unconscious girl with loose blonde hair, wet and matted to her face while two arrows stuck out from her chest and shoulder and crimson red dyed her yellow tunic. An old man stood over the unconscious girl and gently poked her with his walking stick. The girl groaned weakly and her face twitched in response, but she did not wake. The old man sighed and set down his stick against the small cart he had with him. Bending down, he gently lifted the girl in his arms and set her as comfortably as he could in the back of his cart. Then, he moved to the front and took a hold of both handles with either hand and began walking, pulling the cart behind him.

* * *

 **Next chapter - Rai Alone: Rai survives thanks to an old hermit but struggles to mentally recover when she cannot recall who shot her.**


	16. Rai Alone

**I really couldn't resist calling this chapter "Rai Alone", I really couldn't. I mean, come on, this is the chapter where she picks herself back up from rock bottom. Fits the theme, right?**

* * *

Darkness surrounded her as she sank further and further into the deep abyss. She tried to will her body to move and swim the surface, but all she managed to do was lift her arm weakly, stretching her hand out towards the shimmering light above her. She opened her mouth to cry out, but it suddenly filled with water. She choked and cough, flailing about as the abyss continued to drag her down further while she struggled as if watery arms gripped her tightly and pulled while her lungs burned for air. When she could no longer struggle any longer, her arms went limp and sluggish as she blacked out.

Bright green eyes burst open as Rai suddenly inhaled sharply. The feeling of suffocation in her dream felt so real that she inhaled so deeply and quickly, as if quenching a long thirst. Still laying on her back, her hands quickly felt around her, trying to feel out where she was. As she tried to calm her fast-paced breathing, she tilted her head and looked around at her unfamiliar surroundings. She was in a small bedroom, surrounded by four wooden walls. The sunlight shined through the open window just next to the bed. The rays warmed the blanket that covered her legs, generating a cozy and comfortable sensation. But her alertness and not knowing where she was quickly overpowered whatever sense of comfort the warmth gave. Rai noticed that she wore only her tanktop and pants while the rest of her clothes were folded neatly on a nearby dresser. Her chest and shoulder had been bandaged and her hair was loose, long bangs falling in front of her face. She clutched her chest in pain as she tried to sit up, her wounds sending a painful sting throughout her whole body, forcing her to fall back onto her pillow.

When she heard the door open, she quickly stiffened as an old man carrying a tray of food entered. "I wouldn't move around so much like that if I were you," he said, walking in and setting the food on the bedside table. "I did what I could to save your life, but that don't mean you're back to a hundred percent. Go on, eat up," he said, gesturing to the bread and bowl of soup that sat on the tray.

"Wh-who are you? Where am I?" she asked as he helped her sit up and placed another pillow behind her for support.

"I am the guy who dragged your half dead butt from the river side and fixed you up. As for where, this is my humble home. I know it ain't much, but it's my home. You got a name?" he asked.

Rai cleared her throat and answered weakly, "R-Rai."

"Well, good, you don't have amnesia. Frankly, I don't have it in me to deal with girl who's wounded and amnesiac right now. So, you wanna tell me what you were doing on the side of a river with a couple of arrows in your chest?" he asked, taking a seat by the bed. "Did you run into trouble or did the trouble come looking for you?"

"Arrows…" Rai whispered, gently resting her hand over her chest where she was shot as she instantly recalled the events on the clifftop. Images flashed in her mind so quickly that she couldn't process it all at once. All she could see was a shrouded figure in front of her drawing back a bow and two sharp pains, one in her chest and the other in her shoulder. She hunched over and gripped her chest in pain as her breathing became labored.

"Hey, hey, relax," the old man said, sitting up and gently pushing Rai to rest against the pillows.

"H-how am I even still alive?" she asked wearily.

"I used water from the Spirit Oasis up in the north to heal you."

"You're a waterbender?" Rai asked.

He nodded. "And with an injury like yours, no other water would cut it. You're lucky to be alive. I've heard stories of Spirit Oasis water bringing someone back from the brink of death, but I never thought I'd see it!"

"Lucky to be alive…" Rai muttered, casting her eyes down sadly. She was pulled from her thoughts by the man handing her the bowl of soup.

"Eat, you need your strength. The Spirit Oasis water did most of the healing work, but you still need time to recover."

"How did you get water from the Spirit Oasis?"

"It's a lot easier to get with the portals to the Spirit World open. Most waterbenders like to have some on them just in case. You never know when you'll need to save someone's life, like the Avatar."

"What did you say?" Rai asked, trying to hide her distress.

"You know the story of how Katara revived Avatar Aang after the fall of Ba Sing Se? If it can bring the Avatar back from the dead, it can certainly fix you up. Now, eat up before it gets cold."

"Thank you," she said quietly, taking the bowl from his hands. The man left her alone as she finished the soup and bread alone. When she finished, she placed the empty bowl back on the tray and carefully sat up, groaning slightly in pain as she swung her legs off the side of the bed. Placing her hands on her knees, she pushed herself onto her feet, barely holding in a pained groan that slipped through her lips. Her legs felt so loose, almost like she couldn't even feel them there, but she pushed through and slowly stepped towards the mirror affixed to the wall ahead of her. Pausing, she stood in silence as she gazed at her reflection. The girl she saw in the mirror… If Rai didn't know she was looking at herself, she would have sworn that she was looking at some poor girl, broken and defeated. Her body looked so beaten, so destroyed and her face hid behind the long blonde locks the way a child would hide behind their own bangs. She raised her hand to move the bangs aside, tucking them behind one ear, but they almost immediately fell loose again. She sighed as her eyes shifted towards the reflection of her chest in the mirror. Slowly and carefully, to avoid any sudden pains, Rai took the bottom of her tank top with both hands and lifted it over her head. Her entire upper chest was bandaged, along with her shoulder. She reached around her side and fiddled with the bandage, unraveling one of the strands and slowly untied the bandage. A gasp escaped from her lips as she gazed at the two bright red scars that marred her shoulder and upper middle chest. She gently touched the scars with her finger and pulled back when it sent a painful sensation through her body. The Spirit Oasis water had sealed up her wound, but she was far from fully recovered. The flesh was still healing and it felt like the arrows were still in her chest. The blurred image of her attacker suddenly flashed in her mind, disappearing just as quickly before she could process it. Her hand flew to her head as it suddenly ached painfully. She took steps backwards until she felt her legs hit the bed and she sat down on it. When her headache died down, she sighed wearily and put her tank top back on.

Days progressed quietly as her injury slowly healed. Each day, her body felt that much stronger, but something inside her still felt weak and broken. She knew she had to get back, but every time she tried to take that first step, something held her back. One thing rang through her mind persistently: why couldn't she remember who attacked her? She remembered everything else in perfect clarity: leading the slavers away while the others got the enslaved children they rescued to safety. She was ready to fight and kill every single one of those slavers, but what stopped her? Something made her hesitate, but no matter what, she couldn't recall what it was.

When she was well enough to move around again, she started helping her saviour by chopping firewood, a physically demanding job that he simply wasn't able to perform anymore. She wasn't one to do menial work for someone, but he clearly went through a lot of trouble to save her life, the life of a stranger. And as he had put it, she should "spend her time doing something useful rather than staring off into space". Raising the axe high above her head, Rai brought the blade down swiftly, splitting the wood log into two chunks, which both fell into a matching set of piles on either side of her. As she picked up another piece to chop, the hermit came around from his shack and called out to her.

"All right, that's enough firewood. It's not like we're in the middle of winter," he remarked. "I'm heading to the market in town. You coming?"

Panting from exhaustion, Rai wiped her sweaty forehead with a small cloth and placed it down with the axe. "Sure," she said, walking up to the old man's cart, the same one he had used to carry her in. When he stood in front of the cart, ready to take both handles and pull it, Rai gently placed her hand on his. "Let me do that," she insisted.

"Well, I guess it's only fair. I carried your butt in this thing, now you get to carry me. Don't go too fast though; there's a lot of bumps on this road," he replied gruffly, climbing up to the bench at the front of the cart. At a steady pace, Rai pulled the cart with the old man and his contents - fish - along until they arrived at the town at the end of the road. She helped him unload his baskets of fish as he set up his small shopping booth alongside many similar booths, each selling their own wares. She leaned next to the stall as the day went on. People came and went, some purchasing the hermit's fish. Rai couldn't help but wonder what the chances were of her companions arriving at the village. Who knows how far the river she fell into carried her? And who knew if her companions were even heading in this direction?

Did they even know what happened to her? Were they looking for her? Or did they think she was dead? They must have. Even she didn't think she would survive a fall of that height, let alone two arrows to the chest. But did she want to get back to them? To her own surprise, she in fact did! Any other day, she would likely be glad to be rid of all them; she would be glad to be by herself again. It was so much easier being by herself. But despite her guarded defenses, she had warmed up to them. But she couldn't go back to them, not yet. For some reason she was repressing her attack and she didn't feel ready to leave until she could figure out why.

"And who is this?" Rai was pulled from her thoughts as two older women purchasing fish from the hermit turned their attention to her.

"Uh…" Rai began, unsure of what to respond with. Thankfully, the hermit spoke up for her.

"That's my granddaughter. She's staying with me for a couple days," he responded.

"Oh, your granddaughter, how lovely! I didn't know you had a granddaughter." The woman moved over to Rai. "Such a pretty girl," she commented with a smile. "You should wear your hair back; don't hide those pretty eyes," she said, brushing some of Rai's thick blonde locks aside. However, upon seeing the scar over her eye, the woman gasped lightly and pulled her hand back, releasing Rai's hair back over her face.

"Uh, thanks," she replied as the women moved on to the next booth. "Do you actually have a granddaughter?" she asked the hermit once the two women were gone.

"Maybe. My son and I never saw eye to eye on anything and one day we got in such a bad fight that he up and left. Never saw him again. So, I suppose I could have a granddaughter somewhere. You know, you don't gotta stand there all day like a statue. Its making me really uncomfortable. Walk around town for a bit! If I'm gone by the time you get back here, you know the way back." Rai said nothing, but took the man's advice and began to stroll through the town. For the most part, it was like every other little town she had stumbled upon: peaceful and quiet…

"You seriously expect me to eat this crap?" a loud voice bellowed.

"Spoke too soon," Rai muttered under her breath as she looked at a small street side noodle bar.

"That's our house special!" the noodle patron cried nervously. He squealed in fright as the unhappy patron, a large, gruff man dressed in armor, reached over the counter and roughly gripped the man's shirt collar.

"Yeah, well it tastes like shit! Is this seriously how you treated a decorated soldier like myself? I expect a new bowl and this meal to be comped!"

"I-I'm sorry, sir, but I'll need to see some identification to confirm that," the noodle boy whimpered.

"You callin' me a liar? I served for our country!"

"You're no soldier," Rai said, intervening.

"What did you say?"

"What's your rank?" she asked.

"Lieutenant," he replied, releasing the boy and giving him a push.

"And yet, you have the incorrect number of Earth Kingdom emblems on your uniform and your armband is on the wrong arm. Like I said, you're no soldier. I suggest you leave before the real authorities show up."

"Grr, someone needs to teach you some manners!" The man pulled out a dagger and charged towards her, but Rai quickly grabbed his wrist and flipped him over her shoulder while taking the dagger from his fingers and placing it on the counter of the noodle bar. The fake soldier angrily pushed himself off the ground and suddenly sent a stream of water towards her. Rai took a step and rolled away to avoid the strike, only to be hit by a second stream of water she hadn't seen him prepare. The jetstream struck her right in the chest, reinvigorating the pain from her arrow wound. She fell to her back and clutched her chest as she tried to sit up and catch the breath the was knocked out of her. She felt something wet on the corner of her mouth and lightly touched it with her fingers. Blood, she realized, as the recognized the metallic taste in her mouth. The man laughed and reached for his bow, which had been propped up against the noodle bar. She looked up in time to see him draw the bow and she froze instantly as an image of a younger boy with black hair and green eyes flashed over the man in front of her for a split second. Petrified, her eyes widened in shock at the image that just flashed in her mind as she did nothing to move away from the man's line of firing. Thankfully, a fish came flying out of nowhere and hit the man right in the face, causing him to drop the bow and arrow.

Coming out of her trance, Rai looked up in shock at the man as he furiously looked around. "Who did that!" he shouted, but all the bystanders stayed quiet. He grumbled under his breath before quickly saying to Rai, "You better watch your back, girl!"

Rai lay on the ground, propped up by her elbows, breathing heavily and shakily. As the bystanders slowly went back to what they were doing, the hermit appeared next to Rai and bent down next to her. "Come on," he said, helping lift her up by one arm, "we should get you back to- H-hey!" Rai suddenly darted towards a small alleyway, disappearing down the corridor, quickly leaving the hermit behind. She wasn't sure where she was running to, but something just compelled her to run and run. But what was she running from? Even she wasn't sure, but all she wanted was to get away from everything. Though no matter how much she ran, she wouldn't be able to run from this. With every step she took, it felt like the thing she was running from was just inching closer and closer towards her. When her weary legs could carry her no further, she came to a stop deep in the woods.

Her mind was reeling, but one thing was clear to her: she was angry. But she wasn't sure what she was angry at. Herself? The situation? Takumi? Sati? Hiro? All of them? Goro? She knew deep down that none of them were the answer, but at the same time, she didn't want to admit what she was really angry about. When that man drew his bow back at her and the image of the bow flashed over him. It was like the floodgates of her mind came open and the memory instantly poured into her mind. She was on a hairpin trigger and snapped angrily when she heard rustling from the bushes behind her. "Go away!" she shouted, as the sun began to set and rain fell from the sky.

Whoever it was wasn't deterred by her and continued moving towards her through the bushes. She had expected it to be the hermit, here to offer some sort of sage-like advice that would somehow solve all of her problems. But she doubted that anything she or anyone else could say would ease the rage and pain she felt. "I said, 'Go awa-'," Rai gasped in shock as a large green eel hound emerged from the bushes, "H-Haku?" Rai cast her eyes to the ground, still wide in shock. Haku had found her. Were the others with him as well? She suddenly felt completely overwhelmed; she couldn't face them all, not now! Noticing her distress, Haku moved to comfort her, but instead found himself on the receiving end of her unfocused rage. She pulled away from his attempted comforting gesture, growling at Haku to leave her alone. Haku, ever the loyal and stubborn companion, pushed to try and get her to talk, gently nudging her shoulder with his snout. But when his scaly skin touches her, she shouts at him again. Haku jerked back as Rai stood up and unleashed her bottled up rage towards him, shouting at him to leave her alone and that he couldn't do anything to help her. At the end of her rant, she ran off, leaving a stunned Haku behind. As she ran from Haku, from everything she wasn't ready to face, Rai slipped on the mud and landed on her side in the dirt, the thick, wet mud clinging to her clothes, skin and even some of her hair. Now more than ever, she felt so utterly alone and pathetic. She felt broken. She turned, hoping to find Haku standing right there, but was saddened to see that he was not. She cursed herself under her breath for now chasing away the one who had always been there for her.

The pain and heartache was all too much for her to bear all at once as she pushed herself up to her knees in despair. The rain continued falling around her, drenching her clothes and hair as lightning flashed in the sky. She cried out and screamed in pain, feeling like she was being shot in the chest over and over again. She clutched her chest as she cried out once more, tears slipping from her eyes and falling to the ground with the rain. Her life flashed before her eyes, her life of misery and suffering, of pain, but for a brief moment before all of that, a life of happiness and joy: her parents and her little brother. She still had so much to do, so many names to cross from her list, but now she felt so defeated. Every time she tried to remember the face of the one who shot her, her head and chest would hurt, like her mind was refusing to let her remember. It had practically forced its way into her mind earlier, but why wasn't it coming to her now? Now that she wanted to remember it, her mind just wasn't letting her! She tried again this time, concentrating as hard as she could as the archer's face became clear in her mind for a split second. Rai gasped in horror, unable to accept what she saw. "No, it can't be!" she shouted, slamming her fist into the muddy ground. It couldn't possibly be him, not like this! He can't be one of them! After so long of feeling so little, she was utterly overwhelmed by suddenly feeling all too much all at once. She couldn't take it. Rai metalbent one of her bracers into a long smooth blade and held it up to her face. She had always intended this to be the end. Even with her vendetta unfulfilled, all she wanted now more than anything was to forget: forget her past, forget Goro, forget all the pain. She just wanted it all to stop. It would be better this way, she reasoned, to remember him the way he was rather than what he had become. Slowly, she brought the cold metal blade to her neck and rested it against her flesh as her breathing trembled.

"Stop," Rai heard a voice whisper. Instantly, she pulled the blade away and saw none other than Korra standing before her completely dry and unaffected by the rain. "This isn't the answer, Rai."

"Why not? I have the right, don't I?"

"But consider how it will make your friends feel. They wouldn't want you to do this to yourself," Korra said gently.

"They deserve someone better than me. They'll be better off without me," Rai whispered. "All I've ever done is fail. Do you have any idea what it feels like to realize you could have saved someone you loved? That you had the power to do it but found out too late?" Korra stood in silence, allowing Rai to continue. "I could have saved her," she cried as tears began streaming down her face, "if only I had known what I was, what I could do. Kala would still be here. Everything would be different…"

"You mean Arata would not be," Korra began, but Rai suddenly cut her off.

"NO!" she cried, falling to her knees once more as she clutched her head in her hands. "No, no, no," she quickly whimpered over and over again.

Korra sighed and walked over to Rai. "Your mind cannot accept what he has become, so much that it tried to block the memory from you to protect you. Accept the truth. Accept what has happened," Korra said, suddenly becoming stern and firm in her tone. She waved her hand and Rai found herself back on the cliff. In front of her, she saw herself, eyes wide in shock and fear as an arrow struck her in the chest. Rai instantly clutched her chest in response, feeling like she was experiencing the pain all over again and watched as a second arrow struck her other self, who fell into the river below. She heard footsteps and watched as the boy with the bow stepped over to where her other self had stood just recently. When he turned his face, she gasped and stepped back, undoubtedly recognizing the face of her little brother. The vision around her disappeared and Rai was back in the raining forest.

"No… he can't, he can't be one of them. He just can't," she cried with teary eyes.

"I'm afraid he is. The one you loved so much has become the thing you hate the most," Korra said, walking over to Rai. "It is a paradox that you are unwilling to accept, but you must if you are to push forward and survive."

"If… If I had known, I could have saved him. I could have stopped this."

"Many things are often beyond our reach of control. You cannot change the past. Accept what has happened to you, to him. You do not have to kill yourself to keep yourself from feeling pain."

"Then what can I do?" For the first time in her life, Rai genuinely wanted Korra's help as she sat there on her knees begging like a crying child desperate for guidance. "Please."

"Embrace your future," Korra encouraged her. "Your happiness lies in the friends that stand by you. There comes a time when we must choose what is right and what is easy."

Without so much as a farewell, Korra vanished from sight as the rain slowly let up. The clouds parted, allowing the shining sunlight to peek through. She felt the warmth of the sun's rays instantly strike her exposed skin and warm her, realizing that she had been in the forest all night. She looked down at the metal blade over her arm and bent it back into place, sheathing it. No matter how much she wanted to, she couldn't go back and change anything that happened. Every time she imagined her brother, it hurt so much to realize what he had become in her absence, how different he might be had they still been together. She stared out at the horizon with narrowed eyes, suddenly renewed with vigor. She wasn't done yet. She had to know. She had to know what happened to make him this way. She could still save him. "I'm not done," she exhaled shakily. She tightly gripped her fist, showing her resolve. She had come so close to breaking, to giving in, but she wouldn't give Goro or any of the rest of them the satisfaction of knowing they had won, knowing they had broken her.

She heard the sound of soft footsteps on the moist soil and turned to see Haku standing there. "Haku," she sighed in relief that she hadn't completely scared him away and smiled. The eel hound made its way to her, eyes full of concern, as he nudged her with his head. She noticed his caution and quickly stepped forward, wrapping her arms around his head. "Oh Haku, I'm so sorry. Please forgive me," she whispered, gently crying into his scaly skin. Haku sighed and when he pulled away, he gently brushed her long blonde bangs out of her eyes with his nostrils. Rai smiled and rested her forehead against Haku's. "Thank you," she whispered. In response, Haku wrapped his neck around Rai, bringing her body closer to his in a comforting hug. Even though he couldn't say it, Rai knew that he would always be there for her.

After cleaning the mud off her, she climbed onto Haku's saddle, comforted by the familiar feeling it gave her, and rode back to the hermit's shack. Inside, she retrieved her clothes, putting them on as she faced the mirror while Haku peered in from the window. There was just one more thing she needed to do. She pulled out her green hair tie and reached up to her head, gathering her hair - with the exception of the two long strands on either side of her face - and tied her blonde locks together at the top of her head. The hermit wasn't home and judging by the absence of his cart, he must have been in town.

"Got one more stop to make, buddy." With that, she rode Haku into the town and arrived at the hermit's fish booth, only to see him being accosted by the same thug she had fought yesterday. This time he was accompanied by two more.

"I know you're the one who threw the fish at me the other day! Nobody else here sells fish!"

"Feh, anyone could have thrown that fish. You said it yourself! I sell fish; I have lots of customers every day! Or maybe the fish learned to fly!" the hermit argued.

"Right into my face?"

"Of course! You can't assume a fish knows how to fly; they're bound to crash into things on their first go."

Rai jumped off Haku's saddle and narrowed her eyes angrily at the sight before her. She stomped her heel into the ground, raising a pillar of earth up from between the thug's legs and striking him in the crotch. He squealed and released his grip of the hermit, quickly clutching his groin in pain as the earth pillar subsided back into the ground.

Upon spotting her, one of his pals pointed and shouted at her, "Hey!"

"You again?" the leader cried, recovering from the strike and standing up straight. "Guess you didn't learn your lesson."

"Oh, I learned what I needed to learn. Now it's your turn," she replied, taking a combat ready stance. The leader gestured with a nod for his two allies to advance on her. One wielded a sword while the other held a meteor hammer. Rai exchanged glances with the two, keeping her eye on that swinging meteor hammer, but also watching out for the other one in case he tried to surprise her. As she expected, the one with the sword charged first, swinging his blade at her. Rai took a step back to avoid each swing before grabbing his wrist as he lunged with his sword and twisting his arm around his back, forcing him to let go of the sword. She heard a loud whoosh and looked up in time to see the meteor hammer flying her way. She kicked the thug she held to the ground and raised her hand, catching the meteor hammer in her palm, avoiding the row of spikes that ran around it. She seized the chain in her other hand and pulled the other thug towards her. She jumped and delivered a swift kick to his jaw, sending him to the ground. As she turned her attention back at the leader, she saw that he had once again drawn an arrow at her. But this time, she was ready. When he released the bowstring, Rai metalbent one of her blades out and brought it up to the arrow just as it neared her, knocking the arrow up over her and landing in the ground behind her. The thug gasped in shock at her effortless deflection and quickly drew another arrow as Rai advanced on him, eyes narrowed in determination. He fired again, which Rai simply knocked away again. Three, four, five arrows and none of them hit their mark. He quickly reached for a sixth arrow just as Rai reached him. She pulled the bow from his hand and snapped it over her knee before hitting him in the chest with three angled pillars from the ground.

"I suggest you make yourself scarce," she said with a vicious glare. Picking himself off the ground, he dashed off. Rai turned to the old hermit and helped him to his feet.

"Well, you certainly look different," he remarked. "Better than when I first found you, that is."

"I feel better," she replied.

"So you sorted through everything you needed to sort through?"

"Yes, I-" Rai began, but the old man held up his hand to silence her.

"Nope, don't need to hear it. You're all better now and that's all that matters. I don't need to know the details. You and your friend gonna be on your way?" he asked, noticing Haku.

"Yes, thank you for everything," she said sincerely.

"Oh, now go on and get outta here before you make an old man like me blush. I'm sure a youngin' like you has places to be and people to get back to."

Haku lowered himself to allow Rai to climb onto his saddle. "You ready to go?" she asked her faithful companion as she sat atop his saddle. Haku nodded in response and dashed off as the man watched the pair disappear out of the town.

* * *

 **I suppose it's pretty obvious that I drew some influence from the Zuko and Korra Alone episodes. But I also drew some influence from Parasyte (awesome manga that recently got made in an anime finally. Seriously it's awesome, go watch it). There's a part where after the main protagonist suffers a terrible defeat and loses his partner and recuperates with an old woman.**

 **Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I sure as hell enjoyed writing it and boy are my fingers sore!**


	17. Little Brother

**I've been sitting on this chapter for a while now, mostly just because I wasn't feeling 100% about it, but you know what, after days of reading it over and over again and changing almost nothing, I figure I might as well just post it and not keep you guys waiting any longer.**

* * *

Haku dashed swiftly through the forest on the dirt path as Rai held firmly onto his saddle. Within nearly a day's ride, he had brought her to the same village they had evacuated the rescued children to, the same village Haku had left them after Rai's apparent demise. "It doesn't look like they're still here," she said, climbing off his saddle. "An ostrich horse wouldn't stick out so much, but an air bison and puma goat certainly would. I'll ask around, see if anyone knew where they went." Haku tapped her shoulder with his nose before pointing his head towards the inn. "Good idea, I'll start there."

Rai stepped into the inn as the man behind the counter greeted her without looking up from his book. "How many?" he asked.

"I'm not here for a room," she answered. "I'm looking for someone, three someones actually. I think they might have stayed here recently."

The man looked up at her and sighed. "Lady, do you know how many people check in and out of my inn? Do you honestly expect me to remember every single face that comes through my doors?"

Rai crossed her arms. "Two boys, both with dark hair, one long with dual broadswords and one short with a bow and arrows; one girl, an airbender and they had an ostrich horse, puma goat and air bison with them."

"Oh, them," he muttered.

"I take it you remember them then?"

"It's hard to forget having to wheel over a dozen bales of hay for one animal of that size. They were here, left town nearly a week ago."

"Do you know where they were heading?"

"Nope, once they go out those doors, they aren't my concern. All I can tell you is that they were arguing most of the time they were here."

"Arguing, what about?" she asked.

"I try not to eavesdrop on my customers, but the walls are pretty thin. From what I could tell, a friend of theirs got hurt or killed or something and they all disagreed about what to do about it. The one with the attitude wanted to get revenge, but the girl didn't think it was a good idea."

"And the third, the boy?"

"He kept insisting that their friend was still alive." Rai hadn't expected to hear that. She always knew that Takumi was always so hopeful about everything. It was disgustingly annoying, especially to a cynic like her. She didn't care much for his hope in her, but for the first time, she actually felt touched by it. "You need anything else? Cuz I've got work to do," he said, waving her off.

She exited the inn and stood outside its doors, trying to contemplate her next move. She was at least a week behind them and with Haku's speed, she could catch up to them in half that time. The only problem was she didn't know which way they went. She certainly couldn't just pick a random direction and hope she picked right. She could end up traveling in the complete opposite direction! She walked back towards Haku, who was sniffing the ground. "Anything?" she asked. Haku shook his head. "I didn't think so. If it's been a week since they were here, their scents are likely covered up by everything else here by now."

"It's her!" Rai looked up and a small group of children running towards her. As the children gathered in front of her, she recognized them as the children they had rescued earlier.

"You…" she began, but the children cut her off.

"See? I told you it was her!" one of them exclaimed to the other before looking up to Rai, who bent down to their level. "You were the one who rescued us from those men, the ones that took us from our home and… and…" Rai could see that the boy was struggling to finish his sentence as the other children too began to lower their heads and cast their eyes down sadly. She knew how they felt. Their whole world was ripped away from them, their parents murdered. The wounds were still fresh and once they said it out loud, it became real. Rai was prepared to interrupt the boy; she could tell he wasn't ready to admit and accept what happened much like she once wasn't ready, but to her surprise, the boy leapt forward and hugged her tightly. Rai was taken aback slightly by the sudden action, which was followed shortly by the other children. Rai froze, unsure how to respond to this sudden act. But the children pulled away before she could do anything. "Thank you for saving us," they said together, wiping away the tears that had begun to form. Rai sighed and gently pat the boy's head. "But why aren't you with your friends?"

"That's why I'm back here. We got separated and I'm trying to find them. I know they left town about a week ago, but do you know which way they went?" she asked.

The boy nodded and pointed east. "They left in that direction. We didn't want them to go. Sati was so nice and made sure the people here would take care of us. She even said some of the Air Nomads were going to come here and help us."

"Well, then you'll be in good hands. The Air Nomads do good work; you know they used to work with the Avatar?" she asked with a smile, which seemed to do the trick and brighten up the children.

"Yeah, but nobody knows where the new Avatar is! And it wasn't the Avatar that saved us, it was you! Who needs the Avatar when we have a hero like you looking out for us! Y-you're not going to leave too, are you?" the boy asked fearfully.

"I'm afraid I have to. I need to find my friends before they get into even more trouble."

"And, and you're gonna rescue more kids like us, right?"

"Yes," she answered with a firm nod.

The boy looked around nervously before stepping closer to Rai and speaking in a hushed whisper. "Then, I might know where you can find them. One night when they thought we were all asleep, I overheard them talking about where they were going to take us: some place called the Black Cliffs. Do you know where that is?"

Rai gasped lightly at the mention of that place, but kept her cool in front of the children. "I do. Thank you, that really helps. You all take care of each other now. When the Nomads get here, they'll help you. I promise." Rai returned to Haku and climbed onto his saddle. The eel hound craned his neck to look at her as she spoke. "We're going to the Black Cliffs to the east; it's our best chance for finding the others. Those kids said they went in that direction and the Black Cliffs is a prime auction site for the slave market. I should know; it's where I was sold."

* * *

"This is a bad idea and you know it!" Takumi whispered harshly. "We can't possible do this with just the three of us. We'll get caught, or worse, killed!"

"Sh!" Hiro shushed him as the pair and Sati lay on the ground overlooking a small bay of ships surrounded by tall cliff stacks. Down below, they spotted a whole line of children chained together being led into a cave by slavers.

Sati gasped in horror. "What is this?"

"It's an auction," Hiro answered.

"An auction?" Takumi asked.

"This is where slavers bring their… their goods," he muttered, disgusted at the word, "to be sold. This is where Rai and I were sold to Goro."

"Wait, if you've known about this place the whole time, why haven't you already stopped them?" Sati asked.

"They never use the same place twice in a row and there are several other locations all over the world they frequent aside from this one. To keep from being discovered, they change the location for every auction. Sometimes they'll even change the location at the last minute! This just happens to be one of the favorites. The natural formation of the cliffs around this bay makes the location perfectly secluded. I've only ever taken down individual slaver cells. This is practically a cell gathering. It would take weeks of planning and setting up to take the whole operation down, and that's assuming I can accurately predict when they'll use this location again!"

"So what exactly do you plan on doing, assuming you get in there?" Takumi asked.

"Simple, I'm gonna find Ryota and I'm gonna kill that bastard."

"It's not going to be that easy, Hiro," Sati cautioned him. "And what about all the children down there! We have to save them first!"

"Then that's what you two can focus on! Ryota's mine," Hiro replied in a sinister tone.

"One more question: how do we get in?" Takumi asked.

"Well, the entire complex is just a huge underground cavern. If they were smart, they would have dug some emergency tunnels in case of cave ins. I remember hearing a rumor about a slave escaping through one back when I was a kid."

The three were suddenly startled by sound of a twig snapping, alerting them to the presence of slavers that had snuck up on them. "Don't move!" the slaver patrol shouted, brandishing their blades and surrounding the three. Hiro instinctively reached for his swords, while Takumi did the same with his bow, but all three suddenly froze and felt their bodies move on their own. One of the slavers moved his arms, raising them all to their feet and causing the boys' hands, forcing them to drop their weapons to the ground. "Get their weapons!" he ordered, prompting one of the patrol to seize Hiro's swords and Takumi's bow. "So, what do we have here? You three don't look like buyers to me."

"Dammit, I should have accounted for patrols and a bloodbender," Hiro muttered under his breath as the bloodbender kept them standing still. .

"What do we do with them?" another asked.

"They've seen too much. Get some chains, we'll bind 'em and take 'em inside. Figure out what to do with them there."

Hiro narrowed his eyes and growled under his breath as he continued to resist the bloodbender's influence. He just managed to lift his arms up and ignite his hands in flames, but one of the slavers quickly doused him with water while another struck him with the pommel of his sword on the back of Hiro's head, knocking the vigilante out cold.

"Hiro!" Sati and Takumi cried in worry as the slavers roughed pulled them off the ground, dragging them to the pathway leading to the cave entrance while two others lifted Hiro by the arms as his feet were dragged along the dirt. Shackles were locked around Sati and Takumi's wrists and ankles, which had enough slack to allow them to walk at a slow pace.

"What do we do now?" Sati cried in a whisper.

"I don't know! I told him this was a bad idea!" Takumi whispered back as the slaver shoved them forward into the cave. Inside, the pair couldn't help but gasp in wonder at the size of the cave and everything inside. There were working lights and sound systems built right into the cavern walls. Most of the attendees were gathered in the center of the cave, just in front of the large lit up stage, while on one end of the cave were metal cage doors, which several young children were locked behind. Sati and Takumi exchanged looks of horror as they were led into a another tunnel that took them to a small office-like cave.

Hunched over the desk with his back turned to them was a young man with black hair in a short, high ponytail with a quiver of arrows strapped across his back. "We'll start the auction with the younger ones and move up to the older slaves. Save the oldest girls we have for last; they'll go for the highest," he said, handing some papers to one of the slavers with him. Upon hearing the approaching footsteps, he turned to look at the party.

Takumi gasped in shock, recognizing the boy. He lunged forward, angrily yelling, "YOU!" but the slavers quickly held him back.

"What's this supposed to be?" Ryota chuckled at the feeble sight.

"We found them snooping around the cliffs, sir. We figured you'd want to decide what to do with them."

"You figured correct. I am after all the brains of this operation."

"There's one other thing, sir. We found this on him," said the slaver, gesturing to the still unconscious Hiro while pulling out the blue ogre mask.

Ryota's eyebrow cocked in intrigue as he took the mask. "Well, well, well, I believe we're looking at the fabled Blue Spirit, gentlemen. For one who's been causing us a lot of trouble, I didn't expect him to be so young. I know exactly what we'll do with him, a little pre-auction entertainment. Take him to the stage, these two as well. I want them to watch," he grinned sinisterly. Noticing Takumi's angry expression, Ryota stepped closer to him. "What's with you? You look like a wolfbat with your face scrunched up like that."

"You killed our friend!" Sati exclaimed.

Ryota was unphased by the accusation. "I'm afraid you'll have to be more specific. I've killed a lot of people," he replied casually.

"You don't even know her name, do you? You don't even care! Her name was Rai! You killed her!"

At the mention of that name, Ryota's posture straightened as his interest was peaked. "Wait, wait, wait, this is about Rai? Oh, I can't wait to hear this," he howled loudly, "So how exactly do you know my sister?"

"Sister?" Takumi cried in shock. "What are you talking about?"

"What? She never mentioned me? I shouldn't be too surprised. Last I saw of her was at an auction in this very cave, well, if you don't count the time I drove two arrows into her chest and kicked her off a cliff!" Ryota boasted with a laugh. This angered Takumi, who shook off the slaver's hand from his shoulder and charged at Ryota. The slaver leader merely chuckled at the attempt and tripped Takumi before stepping on the side of his head, driving his face into the dirt. "You've got some fight in you, don't you? Reminds me a lot of my sister when we were kids, in fact. But soon enough, that fight will be beaten out of you like all the rest."

"She was your sister! How could you?" Takumi muffled from the dirt.

"So what if she was my sister? Just because we shared blood didn't mean I had to like her. I hated her! I always hated her! She always made fun of me because she could earthbend and I couldn't, always rubbing her little talent in my face while our parents practically worshipped her. They said she was only teasing and didn't mean it, but that didn't exactly make it any better. Then whenever someone else was messing with me, she'd just show up and rescue me like I was some weak little damsel in constant need of being saved."

"Because she cared about you!"

"If she really cared, she would have stayed out of my way! Always coming to save me like that just made things even worse! No one took me seriously because of her; nobody thought I could do anything on my own because she was always around! Well, look at me now! I'm in charge of a vastly growing market and I killed her! Me, a nonbender! You should have seen her face when she recognized me," Ryota chuckled. "Just the pure shock in her eyes. Oh, she was so happy to see me! I was happy to see her too… and then I shot her," he grinned maliciously.

"You're a monster!" Sati exclaimed.

"Oh, no disagreeing with you there. I've done countless horrible things! Do I feel sorry for it? No, not really. That's the difference between you and me. You like to play the hero, the good guy, the virtuous savoir, but some of us? Some of us like to play the bad guy, and I love being the bad guy! Take these three to the stage and get the auction ready!" he ordered his henchmen as they dragged the three away.

* * *

Haku and Rai came up to the Black Cliffs and watched from above as the last of the slaves were led into the cave entrance down on the beach below. Her eyes traveled to the ground, where she spotted a small white object. Stepping off Haku's saddle, she crouched to the ground and picked up a bison-shaped whistle with a small carving of a flower on the side. "This is Sati's," Rai realized, meaning that they were definitely here. Looking around, Rai blew into the whistle and a few seconds later, she heard the low moan of a sky bison as Daisy flew overhead. She landed in front of Rai and happily licked the Avatar before nuzzling her to the ground with her face. Kiwi and Griffith emerged from the bushes as well, both happily greeting Rai as well.

"It's good to see you all too," she smiled, affectionately petting each of them. "They're all in there, aren't they?" she asked. "Well, if they aren't captured now, they will be soon." She stepped closer to the edge of the cliff overlooking the cave entrance. "There's gotta be another entrance somewhere…" Rai stomped her foot on the ground, reading the seismic waves and noticed a small tunnel leading to the same cavern from the other side of the cliffs. She climbed back onto Haku's saddle, riding towards the other end of the cliff, coming to a second beachfront, though this one was less secluded. Rai and Haku nodded at each other as the eel hound leapt over the cliff edge, falling to the beach below. Rai quickly thrust her hand down, slowing their descent with a powerful gust of wind and cushioning their fall while Daisy carried Griffith and Kiwi down safely.

Climbing off Haku once again, Rai moved closer to the rock walls. She placed her hand on the wall briefly, before stepping back and earthbending the slab of rock aside, revealing the secret tunnel. Before stepping inside, however, she turned back to the four animals. "Ok, I'm going in there. I'll be going for any children they have locked up for sale first. If a fight breaks out while I'm trying to rescue the others, they'll just get caught in the crossfire. When they come out, they're going to need help getting away so I need all four of you to carry as many kids as you can and take them as far away as possible." Haku stepped forward, reluctant to leave Rai again. "I know," she said, tenderly patting his snout, "but I can at least fight my way out. They can't. Get them somewhere safe first, then you can come back for us." Haku nodded and as the animals waited patiently, Rai stepped into the tunnel. She stomped her foot once more, sensing the wall at the end and one guard posted right in front of it. She also sensed several young bodies just nearby. From the looks of it, this secret tunnel came right into the slave pens! "Perfect," she grinned. As she stepped up to the wall, she quickly earthbent the slabs of rock aside, leapt forward to cover her hand over the slaver's mouth while driving her armblade into his side. Her hand muffled his scream as she dragged his limp body into the secret tunnel. It was only the one slaver guarding the pens, meaning that the auction was likely starting soon. She had to be quick before more slavers showed up to bring the next batch to the auction stage. She stepped out further into the pens, slaver cells on either side of her, each filled with at least six to eight children bound in chains. She didn't waste a second metalbending the shackles off them and bending open the metal cage doors. Whispers and murmurs of confusion filled the air as the children hesitantly stepped out of their cells.

"There isn't much time," Rai whispered tenderly. "Take this tunnel out to the beach and my friends outside will get you to safety," she said, pointing down the tunnel.

"Come on, let's get outta here!" one of the girls exclaimed, quickly dashing for the tunnel, followed by the other children who initially hesitated. Rai sighed in relief as the children followed the young girl's example. She couldn't afford to waste time with them being indecisive about trusting her. Once they were all through the tunnel, Rai shut it closed with her earthbending. She pulled up her hood and walked out to the main cavern from the slave pens.

"Hey, what were you doing back there?" one of the slavers asked, noticing her coming out from the slave pens.

"Just checking out the merchandise. When's the auction starting?" she asked.

"In a bit. There's some pre-auction entertainment though," he snickered.

"What do you mean?"

"Didn't you hear? Ryota captured the Blue Spirit! That bastard has been interfering with our line of work so people are paying for their turn to rough him up a bit before Ryota kills him."

"Blue Spirit?" Rai turned her attention to the main stage, where she gasped at the sight before her. Despite the large crowd gathered in front of the stage all the way on the other side of the cavern, she could make out Hiro bound to an X-shaped wooden board. One of the slavers was up on the auction stage with him, delivering punch after punch to Hiro's face and stomach while the vigilante couldn't do anything to stop it. He grunted and groaned with each hit, trying his best to keep from crying out and giving them the satisfaction. Rai's eyes drifted to the left, where Takumi and Sati watched the sight in horror while being restrained by slavers.

"Ok, ok, that's enough. If you want another turn, you're gonna have to pay for it. Who's next?" Rai gasped at the sight of the announcer, the same boy who had shot her and kicked her off that cliff. ' _No, that's no boy,'_ Rai thought, shaking her head to banish the thought. She didn't know what that was, but she had to find out, she had to know what happened to make him this way. Before the next slaver could step up to take his turn, Ryota continued his speech. "For those just tuning in on our auction tonight, we've got a special presentation for you all. Gracing us with his presence is the fabled Blue Spirit in the flesh. You've all heard the stories of the vengeful Blue Spirit returning from decades ago and attacking slave and bandit cells. Well, it's no spirit, it's this man right here!" As the crowd booed at Hiro, the vigilante glared angrily at Ryota before spitting on the stage. "And I think he needs to learn a lesson about what happens when you mess with other people's property!" Ryota's declaration was followed by a unanimous cheer of the slavers. "So who wants a piece of him?" As the crowd roared loudly, each slaver pushing past another for their turn, Rai quickly scanned the cavern. Most of the buyers were gathered in front of the stage, two restrained Sati and Takumi while a pair of slavers guarded the cavern entrance, and finally, the single slaver guarding the entrance to the slave pens she had previously emptied. She had to be fast and very precise.

Before she could act however, the guard posted by the slave pens suddenly cried out, "Hey! The slaves are all gone!" Rai quickly stepped back towards him and drove her armblade between the open space in his armor on his side. His body fell to the ground and when Rai turned, she noticed everyone was focused on her.

"If you value your lives, you will leave… now," she said firmly and darkly. A few of them scoffed at her threat and charged towards her, but Rai bent down to her knees and dug her fingers into the ground, liquifying the ground beneath them. The four that charged onto her were suddenly sucked up into the earth, leaving no trace whatsoever. Those that remained froze and gasped in trepidation. Rai raised her head to them, her green eyes narrowed viciously like a sabertooth moose lion cub ready to strike for the kill. For all their pride, that killer look in her eyes was enough to strike fear in their hearts as the buyers stampeded out of the cave to the safety of their ships, leaving Rai alone with Ryota and her still captive friends.

"What the?" Ryota exclaimed before narrowing his eyes angrily at the loss of his buyers. He turned to his two henchmen still restraining Sati and Takumi and gestured for them to attack her. Leaving their captives behind, the two advanced on Rai and came at her from either side, trying to box her in. Rai wasted no time on these two goons, leaping over the first as he tried to come at her from behind before quickly sinking them into the ground with her other victims. Ryota growled angrily at the incompetence of his own men. He drew his bow, aiming the arrow at her and shouted, "Who the fuck do you think you are?"

Rai stood up and kept her head low, causing her hood to hide her face. With a swift wave of her arms, the shackles binding Sati and Takumi unlocked. She did the same to the shackles that bound Hiro to the board as he fell forward and Sati and Takumi rushed to his aid. Ryota growled under his breath and released his arrow, but Rai easily caught the arrow's shaft and snapped it in her hand, tossing the pieces to the ground as she advanced to the stage.

While tending to Hiro, Takumi looked at their savior. He gasped and a wide smile formed on his face as he instantly recognized the dark green cloak, yellow floral shirt, pink wrap and of course, the two blond strands of hair. "Rai!" he exclaimed happily.

"What?" Ryota cried in shock, turning to Takumi before looking back at Rai. She stopped just as she reached the stage and reached up to remove her hood. While Sati, Hiro and Takumi beamed in joy and relief at the sight of her before them, alive, Ryota stepped back in horror. "I-Impossible! B-but I killed you!" he shouted.

"Turns out I wasn't ready to die yet," she replied. "Arata, what happened to you?"

"Don't call me that! That's not my name anymore!"

"Arata, I'm sorry that I couldn't protect you, that I couldn't save you, but why are you doing this? How could you work for slavers when they killed our parents and destroyed our home?" Rai asked desperately.

"You really want to know? Because they gave me the kind of life I wanted. A life without you holding me back and getting in the way!"

"What? What are you talking about? I know I teased you a lot when we were children, but I did everything I could to look out for you."

"I never asked you to do any of that! I never wanted you to! Just because you feel sorry for how you treated me in the past doesn't just make it all conveniently go away now. You may remember it as you looking out for your weak little brother, but you were just making everything worse! You never let me take care of anything myself! Nobody ever took me seriously! And then when they brought us here and that bandit bought you and I finally had my chance to live my life! Nobody wanted to buy me, so I ended up staying with the slavers that took us. Turns out they liked the fight in me and I got a promotion and my life's been going up ever since. And that was all my own doing." Ryota snickered proudly at the sight of the uneasy frown that formed on his sister's face. "What? Were you expecting some sort of sob story or tragedy befalling me after we got separated? Were you hoping that by some miracle being reunited with each other would somehow redeem me and make me see the error of my ways? Well don't! Everything that happened since you and I were last here happened to me because I wanted it to!"

"Arata, please," she begged stretching out her hand to him, "We can fix all of this."

Ryota however, just chuckled maniacally. "You really don't get it, do you? Once again, you're not listening! I don't want to fix anything! This is what I want to be! And you can't accept that because all you remember is the weak and helpless little Arata. Well, I'm not Arata anymore! I'm Ryota now," he said boldly and confidently, slowly backing away and jumping off the back of the stage towards the tunnel behind it. "And I have no sister." He pulled out a detonator and pressed the big red button, causing the cavern ceiling and walls to suddenly explode. The earth shook beneath them as everyone tried to stay balanced and looked up in shock as the cave began to collapse all around them.

"Arata!" Rai called out to her brother as he disappeared into the tunnel, which quickly became blocked by a large boulder falling from the ceiling. As Sati and Takumi climbed down from the stage, carrying the injured Hiro, Rai spotted a large slab of rock break off from the ceiling directly above them. She raised her arm, stopping the rock from crushing them just before it reached them and earthbent it towards the wall. She raised her arms, keeping the falling rocks from crushing them as they reached her. She groaned and struggled to keep the rocks above them as they continued to pile over them.

"What do we do?" Sati cried as the cave collapsed all around them while Rai barely kept them from being crushed.

Rai didn't respond. Instead, she had closed her eyes, trying to keep them all from being buried alive. Suddenly, her eyes burst open, glowing white. The three beneath her watched in awe as she effortlessly pushed the rocks piling over them away. She drew her hand in a large arc shape, causing the cavern to crackle vertically. She brought her hands back together and thrust them out, pushing the entire half of the cliffside out. She screamed loudly as she exerted all of her energy to move the entire mountain, but slowly, the moonlight suddenly crept in through the vertical crack Rai had made earlier. With one final exertion of force, Rai pushed the half of the cliff, toppling it into the sea. Before they could breath a sigh of relief, another chunk of rock fell loose from the half of the cliff still standing. Rai easily caught the large rock in her hands and effortlessly tossed it across the now exposed beach. Rai closed her eyes and breathed an exhausted sigh before plopping onto the ground and placing her hands behind her to support herself.

Just as she opened her eyes, no longer glowing, Takumi leapt forward and tightly embraced her with such force that she almost fell completely onto her back. Takumi wrapped both of his arms around her shoulders while she instinctively wrapped one of her arms around his back. "I never gave up," he sniffled into her cloak, his tears wetting the fabric, "I never gave up hope."

Rai sighed as a small smile formed on her face. "I know," she said, returning the hug, only for her to be caught by surprise by Sati, who joined in without warning, hugging Rai's head to her chest tightly. While being smothered tightly by the two, Rai locked eyes with Hiro, exchanging only a curt nod and smile.

* * *

 **Next chapter: uhh... haven't decided yet . Suggestions welcome!**


	18. Turning Point

**Ok, kinda ended up neglecting the story for a bit. Blame Miraculous, I'm high on that show again XD If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it.**

 **I'm hoping to wrap up Unbroken soon so I can finally spend some much needed time focusing on some original series that I've been neglecting for the last few years . Bad Zephyros, bad!**

* * *

After an eventful night, the group sat gathered around campfire. Rai had finally managed to convince Takumi and Sati to release their death grip on her, their way of expressing how happy they were that she was back and more importantly, alive.

They all had so many questions. What happened? How did she survive? Hiro was the first to speak. "I...I thought you were dead. We saw him shoot you right in the chest. And then we couldn't find your body. I don't mean to sound like I'm not happy that you're here, but how are you here?"

"The current carried me downstream. An old hermit found me and nursed me back to health. He had water from the Spirit Oasi," she explained.

"Spirit Oasis water? Of course! That stuff brought Avatar Aang back after he took a lightning bolt to the back!" Sati exclaimed.

"If I ever meet this man, he will forever have my gratitude. It's just so great to see you back. It makes me feel ashamed for giving up on you so easily," he hung his head.

"It's fine. I was just lucky that someone pulled me out of the gutter. I guess I just wasn't ready to die yet." Her gaze moved over to Takumi, who hadn't spoken at all. From his furrowed eyebrows and the worried look in his eyes, she could tell that something was on his mind and that he was struggling to come out and say it. "You're quieter than usual," she noted, giving him the push to speak up.

At her urging, Takumi spoke up. "Ryota, he… he said he was your brother. Is that true?" he asked, looking at her with such a hurt expression. Sati and Takumi watched Rai intently, waiting for her explanation.

Rai didn't answer right away and sighed, "Yes. His name is Arata, or at least, when I knew him, that's what his name was.

"I remember Arata," Hiro said. "Never in a million years would I have thought Ryota was him. He's so… different, like a completely different person."

"I thought… I hoped that when we saw each other again, things would be different and that I would be able to make up for all those years we were apart and protect him. I guess it doesn't matter anymore," Rai whispered sadly.

"What happened between you and your brother? The way he spoke about you, with so much hate," Sati asked.

"I honestly don't know. I thought he and I were close. I was always there for him. He was small, so the older kids would pick on him a lot. I teased him too sometimes, but what older sibling doesn't? But even then I still loved him and cared about him a great deal. When slavers took us, I did everything in my power to keep him safe and protect him. Maybe… Maybe I'm just remembering it that way because I don't want to remember how bad of a sister I might have really been to him. I can't help but think… Did he become Ryota because of me? Did I make him this way? He hated me enough to try to kill me twice! I must have been an awful sister," she lamented sadly.

"Don't say that!" Takumi cried, standing up, earning a shocked gasp from the three. "You're a great sister, uh, person! I mean, you're strong, brave and you've saved my life countless times now! You may be tough, but you care! I-I think of you like a sister," he smiled innocently, nervously scratching the back of his head as he sat back down on his log.

"I appreciate that, Takumi. But that doesn't change what happened in the past. Maybe my teasing cut him deeper than I thought. Maybe I really was a bad sister to Arata, despite what I remember, or want to remember. I guess it's impossible to be objective when you're remembering the past. Everyone remembers the past in their way. But the past is in the past and I can't change the past. I can't spend my time wallowing in my own darkness thinking about what might have been. That exact line of thinking almost got Korra killed when she fought Kuvira."

"Forgive me, Rai, but you're starting to sound like an Avatar," Sati said with a smile. Rai had always hated it when Sati made such comparisons or statements. But for once, Rai didn't bark at her. Instead, the blonde just chuckled under her breath and cracked a small smile at the airbender.

"Avatar Rai," she out loud to no one in particular. "Even now it sounds completely ridiculous to me. I never considered myself to be a good Avatar. I'm the farthest thing from a pacifistic, diplomatic world leader preaching peace and harmony between nations. All I am is bitter, angry and broken on the inside. I don't believe in peace. I'm no Avatar; I'm just a wild animal, acting on rage and instinct and taking out anything in my way. I'm not someone people should follow."

"No, Rai, you're not-" Sati began, trying to console Rai while reaching her hand out towards her.

"You don't have to say anything, Sati. I know who I am, what I am, and I accepted what this world made me into a long time ago. There's no point on dwelling on thoughts of what kind of person I'd be if things went differently, what kind of Avatar I might have become. But there was a time where I really did consider ending it all. I was in so much pain; I just didn't want to hurt anymore."

"Rai, you mean you were going to," Sati began, a horrifying gasp escaping her lips as she realized what Rai was referring to.

"Well, I didn't and you can thank your Avatar Korra for that. All my life I've had people try and tell me who I am, try to make me into something against my will: a slave, an Avatar. But now that I have the freedom to choose who I am... I don't know what to choose. I don't know what I want to be." Before Sati could speak, Rai continued, knowing what the airbender was about to suggest. "I wouldn't make a very good Avatar anyway. The world needs an Avatar like Aang or Korra, one who spread their ideals through words, not violence and killing. The world will be better off not knowing me."

"But we won't," Hiro said, placing a hand over his heart. "I will follow you, whatever you choose, not because you're the Avatar, but because you're Rai."

Rai turned to Hiro. "I admire your certainty, Hiro. You know what you want. Even now that I have the freedom to choose my own destiny, I feel like something is still weighing me down, pulling me under."

Takumi sat up straight, recalling the words from the fortune teller so long ago. "The chains are broken. But are you truly free?"

Rai looked at Takumi, remembering the fortune teller's words. "Exactly. Freedom is all I've ever wanted, but even though I'm not a slave anymore, I still feel the chains wrapped around me. I'll never truly be free until I eradicate the ghosts of my past and move forward. And all I've done to all of you is push you away, yet you all persisted. I tried to stay away because I thought it would be better for all of us in the end. Each of you was looking for something in me. You were looking for a hero," she said to Takumi. "You were looking for an Avatar," she said next to Sati. "And you were looking for a master to follow," she said lastly to Hiro. "I didn't believe I could be any of those things to all of you. I didn't want to be any of those things. I was convinced that once you all saw that I would never be what you saw in me that you would all leave on your own accord."

"What are you saying?" Hiro asked.

Rai stood up and turned away, keeping her back to them and the roaring fire. "I had the chance to come back sooner, but I didn't. My body was healed, but my mind was still broken. I was alone again, and that was all I thought I wanted. But I found myself... missing all of you," she admitted. "Despite my best efforts to keep you away, I came to care about you. When we first met Takumi, when I offered to help you, it was my intention to get you to your family as soon as possible so everything could go back to normal and I could go back to being by myself. I could have just left the city and not saved your life that night. But... you reminded me of someone. Someone I loved a great deal a long time ago."

"I did that?" Takumi asked, surprised.

"You're a lot like him, or I suppose how I remember him to be. He was kind and brave, but also stubborn and strong willed. He didn't think anything was impossible and he wouldn't let anything keep him down. Every time I looked at you, I was reminded of him, the first person I failed." Rai brought her hand up to her face briefly, as if to wipe something off her cheek.

"Arata," Takumi realized.

Rai nodded. "For so long, I was drowning, drowning in my own doubt and self-loathing. I couldn't stop thinking how differently things might have been if I knew I was the Avatar. And I hated myself for not knowing sooner. I could have saved my family, saved Kala and I could have prevented Arata from becoming what he is now." She took in a deep breath before continuing. "I swore that I would put a stop to as many damn slavers as I could but knowing now that he's become one of them… I don't know if I can go through with it. I wonder if this is how Fire Lord Zuko felt when he was fighting his own family, his own blood. Do I follow through with my promise and strike him down or do I try and save him? He made it clear he didn't want to be saved and maybe I'll never learn what made him this way. He's hurting people and he must be stopped."

"A hero," Takumi said, "You're describing a hero."

Rai chuckled. "Hero. Funny, I never considered myself to be one. I know you think of me as a hero, Takumi," she said, walking around the fire towards him as she spoke until she stood in front of him and bent down to meet his eyes, "that I saved your life more times than you can count. But the truth is, you saved me."

"Huh?" the young boy cocked his eyebrow in confusion.

"You pulled me out from my own darkness and even when I fought you every step of the way, you pressed on. I kept pushing you away, pushing you all away," she spoke to everyone. "I had built up these walls around me to protect myself so that I could be strong. I had forgotten how to let people in, because I was afraid they would be taken from me and I powerless to save them. I thought for sure that in time, you would all leave of your own accord and I would be alone, because I thought it was safer. But I'm glad you didn't. I'm glad that you saw something in me that was worth a damn. I'm glad I met you." Teary amber orbs locked with her own bright green as Takumi leapt forward, tightly embracing Rai, who didn't hesitate to return the hug.

When they pulled away, Hiro asked, "So, what's the plan now?"

"We don't have much time before Ryota's trail goes cold and when that happens, he'll be even harder, if not impossible, to find. We made a big dent in his operation by disrupting that auction and destroying the location. He'll need time to regroup, which is why this is the best time to strike," Rai explained.

"How will we know where he's going?" asked Sati.

"We won't, but we might be able to find some people who will. Ryota's rather secretive, but he likes to keep the select few he trusts well-informed of where he's going and what he's doing. We find one of those men, we find Ryota," Hiro said.

Rai returned to her spot in front of the fire but kept her back turned to everyone. "I won't ask any of you to risk yourselves in this endeavor, so if you want to back out, I'd do it now." She turned around to face them as she finished speaking.

Takumi stood up straight and looked at her with determined eyes. "We're not going anywhere."

* * *

Ryota stepped into the basement of a noodle house and scowled at the sight of the cells, which should have been occupied by his merchandise but now lay bare. The table was split down the middle and debris of what once were chairs was scattered across the room. Pools of blood stained the concrete floor, some blood splatters veering in a straight line indicating that the bodies had already been removed.

"They came out of nowhere," the survivor Ryota had interrogated said. "The blonde took us all out like we were nothing! Sh-She was like a demon!"

There was only one blonde that caused Ryota this much trouble and he growled under his breath at the thought that she had once again evaded death. He already shot her twice, kicked her off a cliff and dropped a mountain on her! What else did he have to do to put her down? "Why'd she leave you alive?" he asked the survivor.

"Sh-She wanted to know where she could find you, sir. I didn't tell her anything, I swear, but she took all our documents and correspondence along with the slaves!" he explained, gesturing to the empty cells and split table, which was originally covered in paperwork.

"What else?" Ryota pressed.

He gulped. "She wanted me to pass on a message to you, sir."

"What is it?" Ryota asked, growing more impatient by the second.

"She said that she was coming for you, that there wasn't anywhere you could hide where she can't find you," he whispered fearfully.

Ryota's face twitched angrily as he quickly reached for the dagger strapped on his belt and drew the blade across the survivor's neck. Blood poured from the cut as the man desperately reached for his neck, struggling to breath and stop the blood from flowing out. After a few seconds, his breathing grew weaker and weaker and his hands fell from his neck as his entire body went limp. Ryota wiped the blood off his dagger with a cloth and tossed the blood-stained fabric aside before sheathing the blade. He turned to his subordinates, who watched the scene quietly. Ryota cleared his throat and straightened up. "My apologies boys, I let my temper get a little out of control."

"What do we do now Ryota? This is the fifth den we've found like this, each with one survivor claiming it was a blonde girl that attacked them," one of his subordinates asked.

"My dear big sister," he began speaking, his sarcastic tone just barely holding back the venomous malice, "continues to be a thorn in my side."

"She's not going to stop," another said, "And at this rate, we're not going to have enough merchandise for the next auction. We already took a huge dent when we lost all the slaves at the Black Cliffs."

"Yes, yes, I know!" Ryota sighed in annoyance. What would it take to get rid of this thorn in his side? His lips curled up into an evil grin as an idea formed in his head. "My sister is indeed powerful and stubborn. Even after shooting her and dropped the Black Cliffs on her, it's done little to slow her down. She won't stop until she finds me."

"So what do we do?"

"Let her come. We'll be ready for her."

"But sir, you've seen what she's capable of! How are we going to stop her? She's like a freight train!"

"Tsk, tsk, tsk," Ryota clicked his tongue in disappointment. "Boys, don't you remember anything I've taught you? How do you deal with unruly and stubborn slaves?" As he spoke, Ryota pulled out black and white photographs of his sister's companions. He had caught a glimpse of two of them after he shot her and was curious about the company with which she surrounded herself. The photos were all taken from a distance and without the subjects realizing. Ryota pulled out one photo of Takumi, and pocketed the rest. Pulling out another small dagger, he held the picture up to the wall and stabbed the dagger into it, pinning the picture to the wall. "You go after the thing they love most."

* * *

 **If I had to guess, I'd estimate that I'll be able to wrap this story up in about three chapters? Pure guess, btw. Scenes always end up being longer than I think once I start writing them out.**

 **Next chapter: Ryota kidnaps Takumi and forces Rai to choose which brother she wants to save.**


	19. The Tower Game

**I don't have much to say tonight. Pretty tired and Legion just dropped for WoW, so I'll be neck deep in that for a while!**

* * *

After raiding nearly seven slaver hideouts, Rai finally had a lead. She had her goal in mind and didn't waste any time in getting to it. She was quick, efficient and ruthless in each of the hideouts she attacked. She and Hiro did most of the work, taking out the slavers and leaving one alive, whom she'd interrogate while Sati and Takumi freed any slaves that were present. The first few she interrogated had very tight lips; they were stubborn and unwilling to give her any information. One had even spit in her face. Her patience was slowly wearing thin with them and she had Sati and Takumi leave the room before she began a more… questionable approach. But sure enough, every little bird sings and each little bird pointed her closer and closer towards her target. Uncharacteristic of her however, she let them live. Not out of mercy; she would never show a slaver mercy. What she wanted was for the little birds to sing something for her to someone else, a message to let him know that she was coming and no amount of arrows or cave collapses was going to stop her.

Nearly a month of nonstop travel and searching passed and it finally brought them here: the largest city in all the Earth Kingdom. "Ba Sing Se," Rai said aloud. Everything she had heard about the enormous city didn't do it justice now that she was seeing it in person. She was hardly awed by the sheer size and presence the city made, she had just… never seen such a large city before.

"I had always wanted to come see Ba Sing Se," Takumi said, standing next to her, "But we could never save up enough money for the trip."

"I wish we were here under more pleasant circumstances," Rai said, laying a reassuring hand on Takumi's shoulder, "But we have a slaver to smoke out."

Getting into the city had been easier than anticipated. The political reforms set about by Prince Wu years ago and the relative state of peace the world experienced contributed to a much more relaxed atmosphere. Despite lacking any official documents and identification, Rai and Hiro were still allowed in. Having an Air Nomad vouching for them helped as well.

"I guess some things never change," Hiro remarked, noting the distinct walls that not only surrounded the entire city, but also divided the three social rings of the city as well.

"People with the most money are always the ones calling the shots, no matter how much someone wants to think otherwise," Rai added.

"So where do we start?" asked Sati, "This isn't exactly like all the other small towns we've been to. This is the largest city in the world! They could be hiding anywhere!"

"Should we try the Upper Ring? It's not as easy to access so they might be hiding up there," Takumi suggested.

"It's possible. But sometimes the best place to hide is in plain sight, which makes the Lower Ring just as likely of a hiding place," Rai responded.

"Perhaps we should split up. In a city this large, we need to cover as much ground as possible," suggested Hiro.

"Agreed. You two look around the Lower Ring for anyone suspicious or the sword and chain slaver emblem. But do not approach them," she said with emphasis to Takumi and Sati. "Send Kiwi or Daisy to come get one of us. I don't want one of you to end up wandering into a slaver den alone. Follow from a distance and observe, do I make myself clear?"

Both nodded while Sati asked, "What about you and Hiro?"

"We're going to try and find a way to sneak into the Upper Ring. They let us into the city without any ID or passport, but I doubt we'll be as lucky if we want to go further."

Knowing their jobs, the four nodded and split up, each going a different direction. Takumi slowly wandered through the marketplace with Kiwi, carefully eyeing all the people that occupied the wide street. Between the sheer amount of people in the street and the number of people running back and forth across his line of sight, it was hard to keep track and really point out anyone that looked suspicious. As he turned the corner to go down another market street, Takumi gasped and quickly pulled back behind the corner. He carefully poked his head out and spotted a familiar figure: black hair in a short ponytail and a bow and quiver of arrows strapped across his back.

"Ryota!" he whispered in shock. But… out here? In the open? For someone so secretive, why would he be so out in public like this? It couldn't have been that easy, could it? He quickly turned to Kiwi and whispered to her, "Find Rai!" As the ostrich horse galloped off, Takumi quickled returned his focus to Ryota. "Shoot!" he cursed under his breath, seeing that Ryota had moved from his spot and advanced further down the market. Takumi slowly crept after Ryota, making sure to keep himself hidden from sight whether it be hiding behind a market stall or pretending to browse market contents with a group of shoppers. Eventually, Ryota moved down to a small alley. Takumi was hesitant to follow, Rai's words echoing in his mind. He had to keep following Ryota, but what if he wandered right into their hideout? Well, he had already sent Kiwi after Rai and knowing her, she would be here any second now. If it was any other suspicious figure, he might have let him go. But this was Ryota, the one person they had been trying to track down for the month! He couldn't let this opportunity slip up!

Takumi watched as Ryota disappeared down another corner in the alley. Takumi slowly peeked around the corner, but stepped out in confusion. It was a dead end. There was no door or window and he was certain he saw Ryota turn here. So, where did he go? Takumi stepped further into the dead end, looking around for any clues as to where Ryota could have gone. Takumi was so focused on the alley that he didn't notice Ryota standing on the roof right above him.

Ryota smirked as he stealthily jumped off the roof and silently landed on the ground. He advanced slowly, his footsteps barely making a sound as he approached Takumi from behind. Ryota quickly wrapped his arm around Takumi's neck and pulled the boy close to him. Takumi panicked and struggled, but Ryota was stronger and kept Takumi in place. "Ah, ah, ah," Ryota teased, clicking his tongue to create the disappointing tsk sound. "What's a little lamb like you doing so far away from your flock?" Takumi tried shaking Ryota off him, but the slaver's grip was tight. The boy grunted, trying to say something, but Ryota's arm pressing against his throat cut off any words that tried to slip out. "Shhh…" Ryota hushed as he felt Takumi begin to go limp. "That's right, go to sleep." Takumi groaned, still trying to resist, until the lack of oxygen took its toll and he passed out.

Ryota grinned as he dropped the unconscious boy on the ground. With a light kick from his toe, he turned Takumi over onto his back. "Time to have some fun."

* * *

Rai walked along the wall separated the Lower and Middle Rings as Haku leisurely followed behind her. The wall was exceptionally thick and no doubt someone would notice her earthbending her way through it. Every entry point was heavily guarded, so sneaking through would be difficult. Rai took a step back as she looked up to the top of the wall. Could she go over? No, someone would spot her climbing the wall and there would surely be guards posted along the top of the wall. If she couldn't go over, then… maybe under? She remembered that Ba Sing Se was originally an underground city before they eventually moved everything to the surface. Those old tunnels and cave must still exist! All she had to do was find an entrance…

"Caaaw!" Rai quickly spun around at the sudden sound and spotted Kiwi galloping towards her.

"Kiwi…" she exhaled as the ostrich horse stopped in front of her. "Takumi…" she realized. He must have found something and sent Kiwi to fetch her, as she had instructed him to do. Before she could tell Kiwi to lead her back to Takumi, an arrow suddenly whizzed right in front of her face and struck the wall to her right. She almost felt the sharp movement of wind actually cut her as the arrow passed right by her. She stared at the arrow in the wall with wide eyes before quickly looking in the direction it had originated from, but there was no one in sight.

She narrowed her eyes in suspicion as she carefully reached for the arrow and pulled it from the wall. Tied firmly to the arrow shaft was a scroll. Wrapped within the scroll was what appeared to be some sort of VIP pass. She moved the pass aside to read the scroll's contents.

 _'Dearest sister,'_

Rai's eyes instantly narrowed as a scowl formed across her face. This was obviously from Ryota; no one else could make that accurate of a shot. But, if he could have hit her, why didn't he? He missed on purpose to deliver this message. And he clearly wrote this opening with as much sarcasm as he could portray in writing.

 _'It seems dropping a mountain on you isn't even enough to bury you. You've made quite a dent in my business and I just can't have that go on. You see, it's bad enough that people know you're disrupting the trade. But it will be far worse for my reputation if people found out my own sister was the one sabotaging us._

 _'They might start thinking I'm weak or incapable, or worse, that we're in league. And I just can't have that. So this is what we're going to do. Enclosed is an elite pass you can use to gain access to the Upper Ring. When you get there, come to the Gallery Tower, you know, the one that overlooks the whole city. It's technically closed for the day, but I'm sure you'll find a way inside. You and I will settle this once and for all. Two go in, one comes out._

 _'And you will come alone. The pass only works for one. Sorry, no plus ones and that includes the eel hound and the rest of your menagerie! And I'm sure you're thinking that this is clearly a trap! Well, it is. And you're still going to come anyway. Why? Because I have something precious to you in my possession. You have one hour. If you don't show - or if you do show and you're not alone - it's simple: I will kill Takumi._

 _'See you soon, sis!'_

Rai's hands shook furiously as she finished reading the letter. He had Takumi and he knew she would come for him, all the while taunting her with his words like "dearest sister" and "see you soon, sis"! He wanted her to play his sick game… and she didn't have a choice. She took the elite pass in one hand while setting the letter aflame with her other, tossing the burning pile to the ground in anger.

An hour. That wasn't a lot of time. She had no idea where this Gallery Tower was and it was all the way in the Upper Ring, the complete opposite end of the city. She didn't have time to find Sati and Hiro and tell them what happened. And Ryota would kill Takumi if she came with anyone. She quickly climbed onto Haku's saddle and rode towards the nearest gate leading into the Middle Ring. However, she stopped when she spotted a market stall to her immediate right selling waterskins.

She was about to walk head first into a trap and even if waterbending wasn't her best, she'd need every advantage she could get and Ryota not knowing she was the Avatar was her only advantage right now. She stepped off Haku's saddle and purchased the largest waterskin they had. She strapped the waterskin securely over her right shoulder before bending water from a nearby well straight into the skin until it was completely full. She pulled her dark green cloak back in place, concealing the waterskin as she made her way to the gate leading to the Middle Ring. She turned to Haku and Kiwi, both awaiting her instructions. Any other day, she would tell them to go find Sati and Hiro, but Ryota's instructions were clear. She had clearly put him on edge, which she had intended to do by raiding all those hideouts. But now, she couldn't afford to push Ryota any further, especially if he had Takumi. Even if he was lying about that, she couldn't risk it.

"Stay here," she simply said before moving towards the gate checkpoint. She handed the officer the elite pass and he simply waved her on through. She took the monorail straight through the Middle Ring to the Upper.

As the Upper Ring gate official waved her on through, he quietly muttered, "Gallery Tower, northeast." Rai quickly turned to look at the official who spoke, but he didn't look at her and instead focused on the next person coming through the gate. He must have been one of Ryota's men, guiding her to the Gallery Tower. That meant one thing: Ryota was eager for her to arrive. She made off towards the northeast, running as quickly as her feet could carry her. Her hour was almost up, which only made her push herself faster and harder. She spotted a sign that read "Gallery Tower" pointing to a tall rectangular tower in the plaza ahead. As Ryota said in his letter, the tower appeared to be closed to the public today. She moved to the front door and placed her hand on the lock.

Metal.

Rai placed her palm over the lock on the door and quickly flicked her wrist, metalbending the lock open. She carefully looked around the plaza, making sure that no one was paying attention before she slipped inside the tower doors. It was completely dark inside, but as she took a step forward, the lights slowly came on. The ground floor of the tower was completely empty, with the exception of the elevator at the far end of the room. The door was already open, as if it was waiting for her to get in.

She knew this entire thing was a huge trap, but she didn't have a choice. Takumi's life was at stake. Once she stepped into the elevator, the doors closed behind her and the elevator rose.

* * *

Takumi groaned as he slowly opened his eyes. He tried to move his arms and legs, but as he became more aware of his surroundings, he discovered he was sitting in a chair with his hands tied behind his back and his ankles tied to the chair legs. He struggled against his bonds, but the ropes were tight and dug into his skin painfully.

"Ah, he's awake." Takumi looked up and saw Ryota walk over to him, pulling a second chair behind him. Ryota stopped in front of Takumi, pulled the chair forward and sat in it in reverse, resting his arms on the back of the chair. "So, how're you feeling?" he asked.

"How am I feeling? What the hell is going on here?" Takumi shouted.

"Wow," Ryota said, impressed, though Takumi was certain that wasn't genuine. "You really have some bite to you. I can see why my sister likes you so much."

"What is this?" Takumi asked, narrowing his eyes angrily at Ryota.

"Isn't it obvious? It's a trap of course, and you're the bait!" Ryota exclaimed excitedly.

"Bait? I don't know what you're planning but Rai's going to stop you!"

"Oh, by the time she gets here, she'll be too late to stop me. We're going to play a game, you see, all three of us."

"What kind of game?" Takumi hesitated to even ask.

"It's simple and I'm sure a genius like you will be able to figure out the rules. I like to call this game: Who does Rai love more?"

"What?"

"You see, I'm a proud guy and I don't like the idea of being replaced."

"Replaced? What are you talking about?" Takumi cried desperately.

"Why you, obviously! That was probably the only reason she took you in in the first place, because you just reminded her of me," he said, placing his hand on his chest. "She's come to cherish you as one would a little brother. There's just one problem: the position has already been filled. Rai has only one little brother and it is me," he leaned in close to Takumi as he whispered menacingly into his face.

"Why do you care?" Takumi barked, "You said you hated her!"

"And I do! But there's just this little part of me that can't stand the idea of being replaced. Maybe it's my pride," he mused, tapping his index finger on his chin in thought. "Either way, I don't like being replaced and I'm curious to see just how far Rai is willing to go. When it comes down to it, I want to see which little brother she loves more, which one she'll chose to save."

Takumi grit his teeth, trying not to let the uneasy feeling forming in his stomach show. "You're crazy!" he cried out.

"I prefer the term theatrical!" Ryota exclaimed, thrusting his arms out to the side as he grinned widely.

"Sir," one of Ryota's henchmen spoke up, "She's here."

"Ah, good. Go down and greet my sister, would you?" Ryota asked, waving his henchmen away. "Sit tight, Takumi," Ryota smiled sadistically while patting Takumi on the head. Takumi tried leaning away to avoid contact and shook his head after Ryota pulled his hand away. "Enjoy the ride."

* * *

 **Next chapter: Rai battles her way through Ryota's subordinates to reach Takumi, but must make a difficult decision.**


	20. Standoff in Ba Sing Se

**Well, I was about to say don't expect much activity from me since I'm still knee deep in Legion, but my good buddy Powershade117 is helping me wrap up the story. I'd say about 2-3 chapters after this one? Plus I gotta have something to do when I'm not at home playing WoW.**

* * *

The elevator came to a stop on the second floor as Rai cautiously stepped out and the elevator door closed behind her. The lift hadn't taken her all the way to the top; she hadn't even pressed any of the buttons to get it to move. Someone else was controlling the lift, which meant she wouldn't be able to ascend the tower further until she did something on this floor. The room was completely empty, except for the doorway leading to a viewing balcony to her left. When she stepped out onto the balcony, she found a broad shouldered man with a mohawk and large warhammer resting on his shoulder waiting for her.

The man snickered under his breath as she stood opposite to him. "So, you're the one causing the boss all this trouble? Eh, I don't see it. How can one small fry like you create such a mess? This'll be easier than I thought," he said, readying his giant weapon.

"So, Ryota wants me to play his game, huh? What do I have to do? Fight a henchmen on every level until I reach the top of the tower while each level gets progressively harder? Seems trivial," Rai remarked, crossing her arms.

"Aw, don't spoil all the fun. If you make it to the top, you get to pick a prize. But you won't be making past me," he declared confidently.

"We'll see about that," Rai replied.

Her opponent raised his giant warhammer to bring it down on Rai, but she easily flipped back to avoid the massive weapon's strike. She didn't waste any time dashing towards him as he lifted his warhammer and raising her fist to deliver a punch to his jaw. Her aim was true and the strike hit, but he didn't seem that affected by it. Instead, he brought a hand up from his warhammer and wrapped it tightly around her wrist and slammed her into the wall. Her head struck the wall hard, causing her ears to ring and her sense dull momentarily, but she managed to recover in time to avoid another strike of that warhammer. She thrust her arm forward, unleashing a jet of fire. She had to put some space between him and her so she could recover.

"He said you were an earthbender!" she heard him exclaim loudly over the flames. She felt the dizziness in her head begin to fade just as he burst through the flames with his hammer. Rai leapt up onto the railing behind her, but he brought his hammer back up and rammed the head of it into her stomach. The force of the blow knocked her over the edge of the balcony, but Rai was able to stabilize herself with small fire jets from her feet and palms. Just as her opponent leaned over the railing to look for her, she quickly moved under the balcony and emerged from the adjacent side. She surprised him with a sudden and powerful jetstream of water from her concealed waterskin, knocking him back into the tower as his hammer fell to the floor of the balcony. Drawing the water back into her waterskin, Rai picked up the warhammer with a heave and threw it head first towards her target, striking him right in the face as he began standing up. The blow instantly knocked him out, not before breaking his nose and knocking out a few of his teeth, which scattered to the floor.

"You were right," she remarked to the unconscious man, "That was easier than I thought." Upon hearing the unmistakable _ding_ of the elevator, Rai turned her head just in time to see the elevator door open again, beckoning her to enter so it could carry her to her next challenge. She stepped inside as the door closed in front of her. She had to play Ryota's game for now and he would be watching her every move.

When she stepped out on the next floor, there was nothing and no one in sight. This floor had no viewing balcony or windows, instead the walls were decorated with old sepia tone pictures detailing the tower's construction. Rai had expected to find an opponent waiting for her, another person for Ryota to send as cannon fodder to stall her arrival. She couldn't help but get an eerie feeling as she stepped into the middle of the room. Suddenly, a black cable appeared from above her and wrapped firmly around her neck. Rai's hands shot to her neck as she tried to grasp at the cable as it lifted her into the air by her neck, cutting off her breathing. She didn't have much time to act; she moved one hand behind her neck and felt the length of cable going up to the ceiling. Rai could already feel her consciousness begin to slip and her arms slowly limp, but she managed to whip out one of her arm blades and slice through the cable. She fell to the ground on her side and coughed hoarsely as she took in desperate breaths. As her breathing calmed, Rai grew aware of the presence behind her. She heard them take a step forward, followed by a metal sound not unlike the one made by metal cables being ejected from their spools. She rolled to the side and blasted a powerful stream of air from her fist, but her opponent - a slim female figure dressed entirely in black with a hood concealing part of her face - easily side stepped away and bent another cable towards her. The cable wrapped firmly Rai's wrist as the cloaked woman pulled, causing Rai's air attack to stop as she was yanked forward. When she felt the cable release her arm, Rai grit her teeth angrily and prepared to blast her opponent with a massive fireball, only to suddenly be whipped by the cable on her cheek. She flinched and couldn't help but cry out as the painful sting brought back a flood of memories, memories of a whip on her back, arms, legs, face… over her eye.

Rai heard the woman chuckle at the sight of her. "I bet you miss that, slave," she heard the woman remark. As much as the pain brought back all those memories, it also brought back all the rage and anger.

Without turning her head, Rai cast her eyes towards the woman, just spotting her in the corner of her eyes. She brought her right hand up to her cheek, gently laying it against where the cable whipped her. Her left hand clenched into a fist as she swiftly brought it up and thrusted it forward, unleashing a torrent of flames. However, the woman easily avoided them by grappling to the beams on the ceiling. A cable wrapped firmly around Rai's left arm as the woman pulled on Rai's arm, ending the stream of fire. The woman swiftly advanced on Rai, who tried swiping at her with fire attacks, which she was either able to avoid entirely or use her cable to prevent Rai's other arm from properly firebending. Once she was in range, the woman grabbed Rai's wrist and pinned it behind her back while holding her other arm around Rai's neck. The woman leaned in close to Rai's ear and Rai heard her lips part, ready to say something, probably a taunt. But Rai was hardly in the mood. Before the woman could get a single syllable out, Rai stepped backwards and slammed the woman into the wall before headbutting her in the face. Once she felt the woman's grip loosen, Rai pulled away and stepped away from her. Noticing the woman's cable still wrapped around her wrist, Rai gripped the cable in her hand and pulled, yanking the woman forward as Rai jumped, spun in the air and delivered a swift kick to her face, sending her to the floor.

Rai stood over the woman, knocked out cold, as she unwrapped the cable from around her wrist. She was about to move back to the elevator, which had once more opened for her, but she stopped and cast one more look at the cable spools around her fallen opponent's waist. Rai moved to the unconscious woman and removed the cable spool belt from her and strapped it around her own waist. "Might come in handy," she said to herself.

The elevator doors opened for her for a third time as Rai stepped out. Unlike the last two floors, this one had a chair in the middle of the room. A young boy sat in the chair, a bag over his head, as he leaned forward limply while his arms were tied behind the back of the chair. She immediately recognized the red shirt and yellow sash and rushed to the boy in the chair. "Takumi, are you ok?" she asked in bated breath as she sliced through the ropes around his wrists. When she received no answer, she moved to kneel in front of him and pulled the bag off his head. However, while she expected to find amber eyes and spiky black hair, instead she found an unfamiliar boy with brown hair and green eyes.

"I'm sorry! He made me do it!" the boy cried, quickly raising his arms to protect himself.

"What? Where's Takumi?" she cried, however, the boy mistook her the desperation in her voice for rage and flinched in fear under her. In her panicked state, Rai failed to notice someone slowly and quietly come up behind her. The assailant swiftly drove a small dagger straight into her left thigh. Rai cried out in pain and immediately fell to one knee as she reached for the dagger that stuck out of her leg. With a pained hiss, she wrapped her fingers around the handle of the dagger and with one swift movement, pulled the blade out, causing some of her blood to splatter on the floor.

"The game's not over yet, sis," the assailant spoke. Rai gasped and turned around to see Ryota standing over her with a confident smirk plastered across his face. As he circled around her, the boy dressed in Takumi's clothes ran off and hid in the corner.

"Why are you doing this?" she asked, clutching her bleeding leg.

"Why does anyone do anything?" he replied. "Because it's fun!"

"And dressing up another kid as Takumi? What does that do for you?"

"It was easy enough to find similar looking clothes to those rags he wears. As for why, I like seeing that spark of hope in your eyes, that relief that you've found him safe and sound only for it to disappear when you realize you're too late. Or maybe I want to mess with you, the same way you used to mess with me," he glared at her viciously.

"We're were children then!" she argued. "It was harmless!"

"Harmless is the last word I'd use to describe it. And some could say that we're still children now."

"Then why take Takumi? He's innocent in all of this. This is between you and me! If you wanted me dead, you could have already killed me by now."

"Ah, but I don't want to kill you. At least, not anymore. You see, I've learned my lesson. Shoot you in the chest twice and kick you over a cliff, you survive. Drop a mountain on you, you still survive," he counted off on his fingers, "I'd just be wasting my time and resources trying to come up with a plan to top that. Rest assured sister, you'll walk away from this alive."

"And what about Takumi? Why take him?"

"Because Takumi is the thing you love most in the world. You can deny it all you want, but I know love in another person's eyes when I see it. I see it a lot in the slaves we sell; crushing that love, that hope, has become a favorite hobby of mine," he grinned, clenching his fist, "And that's what I want to do to you. I want you to be grovelling at my feet, broken and shattered, a shell of your former self. I'm going to do what the slavers never could do to you; I am going to break you. Takumi's survival depends entirely on you. I think it's sweet how much you care about him. It reminds me of the good old days," he remarked sarcastically.

"You sound jealous," Rai pointed out.

Ryota's confident grin disappeared and was replaced by another glare as his lips curled up, forming a contemptuous sneer. "I'm. Not. Jealous," he said each word individually with emphasis. "I just want to see how far you're willing to go to save your precious little brother," he said, walking back towards the elevator. "I think it's sweet, the relationship you two have formed. But no doubt a pale imitation of the original."

"That's not true," she muttered, gritting her teeth angrily.

"Now here's one thing I don't understand: why in the world the spirits picked you of all people."

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, don't play dumb with me, sis. I saw the bending you did against my henchmen. As if you needed one more thing to rub in my face like you did with your earthbending," he spat, "But guess what? I don't care! I could care less if you're the Avatar! It doesn't change anything!"

"Are you saying that to convince me or yourself?"

All that did was anger Ryota further, prompting him to angrily shout, "Shut up!"

"I never asked to be the Avatar, Ryota!"

"Oh, it must be so hard for poor little Rai," Ryota taunted in a fake sobbing tone with a pouted lip. "It must be awful being able to bend all four elements. Boo hoo! Give me a break! I bet you love it; I bet you love having all that power, having people worship the ground you walk on like some god! Well guess what? All you are is vermin. That's all you'll ever be and that's all anyone will remember you for. Whether Takumi lives or dies is entirely up to you. See you at the top," he said, ignoring her protest and stepping into the elevator. As the doors began closing, Rai leapt forward to hold the doors open, but the wound in her leg sent a paralyzing shock of pain through her entire body, causing her to fall back to her knees. She gently pressed her hand against the wound. When she drew it back, her fingers were covered in red. If her waterbending was any better and if she knew how, she would heal it. But it wasn't. All she could do was tear a piece of fabric off her dark green wrap and tie it securely around her leg. She hissed and winced in pain, but she had to tie it tightly. As strong as she was, if she kept losing blood, she would pass out. As she finished the knot, she placed her hand on her other knee and slowly pushed herself onto her feet. She kept most of her weight on her right leg and gently put some weight on her left, but drew back when she felt another surge of pain. She took a deep breath and, biting through the pain, began to limp towards the elevator. She drove one of her gauntlet blades between the doors and pried them open with her hands. She looked up the elevator shaft and saw the lift several floors above. Taking a step back, Rai raised her hand and swiftly brought it down, but the elevator did not move. Even the button wasn't summoning it.

"Platinum," she muttered. And seeing as Ryota clearly had some control over the elevator, he wouldn't send it down to her unless he wanted to, which meant she had to find another way up. There was the obvious solution: stairs. But with her injury, getting up so many flights would be difficult enough, not to mention costly to the amount of time she had. The more energy she expended getting up those stairs, the faster her heart would beat and the faster she'd bleed out. She needed a faster way. She limped towards the viewing deck on this floor and turned her back to the horizon to look up the rest of the tower. If she had to guess, she'd say there were four floors between her and the roof where Ryota and Takumi were waiting for her. She could easily use some firebending to propel herself straight to the roof, but with her injured leg, she wasn't sure if she'd be able to sustain the fire propulsion well enough. If her leg wasn't strong enough to propel at least the same force as her uninjured leg, she'd lose her balance and fall out of the sky. She same would likely happen if she tried airbending her way up there, she wagered. She needed a more secure method of scaling the tower.

Rai's hand brushed against the cable spools attached to her waist. That's right. She took the cable spools from the second henchmen she fought, figuring they might come in handy. She thrust her arm up, firing the cable end up to the roof. The cable wrapped tightly around a pipe and Rai gave it a firm tug to test its security. When it seemed secure, she pulled her arms down, causing the spool to begin retracting the cable and pull her up the side of the tower. She landed on the roof roughly on her feet, causing a shock of pain to travel up her leg. She groaned in pain, falling to one knee while biting her lip until the pain subsided. The cloth she had wrapped the wound it was already turning completely red from her blood. She had to move fast.

"Ah! She finally joins us!" Rai looked up to see Ryota on the opposite end of the roof holding Takumi - whose hands were bound behind his back - with one arm around the boy's neck and shoulders while the other held a dagger to his throat. She sighed in relief upon seeing him. Despite his disheveled clothes and hair and a bruise on his cheek, he looked well enough.

"Rai!" Takumi called out to her. He tried lunging forward towards her, but Ryota kept a firm grip on him and kept the dagger close to his throat.

"Takumi, everything will be fine. I promise," she smiled sincerely as she pulled herself to her feet.

"Oh, don't lie to him like that, sis. We both know he's going to be far from all right," he said, threateningly bringing the dagger right against Takumi's skin.

"Ok, ok, I'm here. What's your endgame?" Rai asked, holding up her arms in surrender. So long as Ryota had Takumi in his grasp, she couldn't act, not without risking Takumi's life. She'd have to play along until she got Takumi away from him.

"This," he replied, bringing the dagger away from Takumi's neck to gesture to the whole of the roof before bringing it back. "You choose, right here, right now, which little brother you want to save."

"What?"

"You heard me! Which is it gonna be? Your precious little brother Arata," he began, using his birth name for the first time since she they had reunited, "or my replacement. That's all he is, isn't he? Someone you took in to replace me, to fill the hole in your heart?"

"That's not true," she said, shaking her head.

"Oh yes it is! I know it, he knows it and you know it! How long did it take before you took him in? How quickly did you replace me?"

"It wasn't like that!" Rai yelled.

"Don't lie to me!" he shouted across the roof. "How easy was it for you to forget about me? Did I really mean so little to you? Is that why you never came back for me? I suppose I shouldn't be too upset about that, I never tried to come after you. But I never forgot about you, Rai! I could never forget you!" His voice almost sounded sentimental, if not for the pure malice and venom he spoke with. "But just because I hate you with every fibre of my being doesn't mean I'm not insulted by the idea of being replaced by this weak little twerp! I'm your brother, not him!"

Rai kept a straight face, calm and collected, as she watched Ryota rant. She closed her eyes and said softly, "No, you're not. You were right from the beginning: my brother is dead. Arata died a long time ago." Her tone was firm and decisive. She wasn't just saying this; she believed it too. "Arata is dead and I couldn't save him." She opened her eyes. "You, I don't know who you are."

With a blank expression, Ryota looked down to the floor as he sheathed his dagger. "If I didn't already hate you so much, that little speech would definitely do it. Yuck," he gagged. "You see, when I say I hate you, you know it because I've tried to kill you twice already! But do you think it's really that easy to just denounce me? You can say all you want that your brother is dead; you can try to convince yourself that you don't care about me." As he spoke, Ryota slowly stepped back towards the edge of the roof, bringing Takumi with him. Rai gasped when she saw this and stepped forward, but Ryota's feet were already right at the edge. "But actions speak louder than words. What you choose to do will show which one of us you love more. Like I said, two go in, one comes out. Time to choose!" With a maniacal laugh, Ryota leaned back and fell over the edge of the roof, bringing a flailing and screaming Takumi with him.

"No!" Rai shouted, running to the edge of the roof at full speed, completely ignoring the pain in her leg. However, just as she reached the edge, her left leg gave out beneath her and she fell to the ground, sliding to the edge of the roof. She saw Ryota and Takumi falling to the street below, Ryota completely calm with a smirk on his face while Takumi screamed in terror. Not even thinking, she thrust both arms forward, firing two cables from the spools around her waist. Both cables raced to reach their targets as time seemed to slow all around them. One of her cables looped and wrapped firmly around Takumi's ankle. Despite her strength, the sudden weight of Takumi's body threatened to pull her over with him, but she managed to keep herself in place. His descent was halted as the cable held him high above the ground and pulled him back towards the tower, Takumi's back colliding with it. Rai turned to her second cable and watched as it tried to reach for Ryota, who made no effort on his part to reach for it. Rai gasped in shock when she heard the _click_ of the cable spool, indicating that she had reached the end of its length, forcing the cable to just stop short of Ryota. Realizing this, Ryota looked up at his sister, a wide-eyed look of horror on his face at what this meant. She expected to see him start flailing wildly as Takumi had and call for help, but instead he narrowed his eyes at her and moved his mouth as if to say something, but Rai couldn't hear him..

Rai flinched and shut her eyes tightly as she heard Ryota's body land on the pavement below with a bone shattering _thunk_ , followed shortly by the screams of horrified civilians. Her breath shuddered and her body trembled as she looked down below to Ryota's broken and bloodied body. She managed to focus her thoughts and remember Takumi, still dangling below. She bent the cable to retract while pulling Takumi up with her hands, trying to get him back up to safety as quickly as possible. When his body was within reach, she grabbed him with both hands by his shirt and arm and pulled him back onto the roof.

"Takumi! Takumi, are you ok?" she cried frantically, undoing the ropes that still bound his wrists. When he didn't answer, she called to him again more urgently. "Takumi!" She turned him around and gasped in terror at the sight of his closed eyes. She quickly felt for a pulse and placed her hand over his nose, relieved to feel both a pulse and his exhale. Not dead, just unconscious, either passing out from the fall or when he slammed into the tower. She gently lay him down on his back and placed her hand on his face. "Takumi, wake up, please!" She lightly tapped his cheek with her hand as he began to stir.

"R-Rai?" he groaned.

"Yes!" Rai exclaimed with teary eyes and a smile of relief. "You're ok, it's ok," she whispered reassuringly both to him and herself, taking Takumi into her arms and hugging him tightly. Takumi was alive and ok, and that was all that mattered to her.

* * *

 **And so ends Ryota... I knew the second I concepted the idea of his character that this was how he was gonna die. I did not envision any sort of redemption for his character whatsoever. So tragic...**

 **And Rai finally has some metalbending cables! I think I had wanted to give her those from the start, but as I was writing the story I kinda forgot to incorporate them lol.**

 **I hope it doesn't need explaining, but if it does, here it is: the contradiction that Ryota hates Rai but can't stand the idea of being replaced as her little brother is intentional. I like to think that it makes him more realistic and I like a bit of contradiction in my villains every now and then.**

 **Apologies if the two fights in the beginning were a bit quick. I think I'm just mentally drained and exhausted from all the Legion playing .**

 **Next chapter: Rai grieves the death of her brother while her friends fall into the clutches of her oldest enemy.**


	21. The Master

**So, turns out I couldn't stop the writing bug...**

 **Now, I must stress that this chapter is a bit more... mature. There's a lot of heavy themes and implications so reader discretion is advised. Not suitable for little ones!**

* * *

Rai sat in a room completely shrouded in darkness. The blinds were shut, keeping out any light from seeping in. Only a few small cracks of light slipped in around the edge of the curtains, dimly lighting the room. Instead of laying in the comfortable bed, Rai instead sat on the floor, leaning her back against the side of the bed. This had gone on for nearly three days since the tower incident. Rai and Takumi had managed to slip away from the tower before authorities arrived on scene. Sati and Hiro found them as they made it back to the Lower Ring and at their insistence, Rai got her wound looked at at a small free clinic. When asked about what happened, a simple mugging story seemed to satisfy their curiosity. They rented a few rooms in a small, cheap inn and it was here where Rai had practically barricaded herself in.

"It's been three days!" she heard Sati whisper urgently outside her door.

"Give her time. She's grieving," Rai heard Hiro say, "Just because she and her brother didn't get along doesn't mean she's not sad that he's dead. If she wants to be alone right now, we should give her her space."

"I just hope she's ok and that she knows she doesn't have to go through this alone." Sati raised her voice for the last part of her sentence, as if to say that loud enough on purpose so Rai could hear.

"She'll come out when she's ready." Rai heard their footsteps trail off. She leaned her head back against the edge of the bed, closed her eyes and let out a long, tired sigh. She honestly didn't know how to feel about Ryota's death. He was her brother, yes. Keyword being "was". She had put that part of her life behind her, accepted what happened to him and that she couldn't change the past. But still, part of her was sad over his death, but at the same time, happy that Takumi was alive.

As if on cue, she heard a pair of soft footsteps stop outside her door, followed shortly by a light knock. Rai said and did nothing, giving Takumi the opportunity to enter. The door creaked open as the boy poked his head inside. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the darkness of the room before he spotted Rai. He stepped inside, gently shutting the door with his foot as he carried a tray of food over to her. He dropped to his knees and placed the tray on the bed. He took the cup of tea in one hand and the bowl of noodles in the other. She took the cup of tea first, taking a sip before setting it on the floor next to her.

"It's beef, your favorite," Takumi smiled, remembering the first time they shared a meal. She took the bowl and began slowly slurping up noodles as Takumi settled in next to her. The two sat silently in the dark with the only sound being Rai slurping up noodles. After a couple minutes, Takumi finally spoke. "I know it wasn't true, what Ryota said." Rai finished slurping up the last of her noodles, lowered the bowl and turned to face Takumi. "I know that I'm not his replacement."

Takumi looked up at her, a smile just shining through the near darkness. She returned his smile with one of her own and affectionately ruffled his hair.

"You took me in because you knew I needed help, because you're a good person, a hero. That's why you tried to save both of us."

"Yeah, I've been thinking about that. When he pulled you over with him, I didn't have time to think. I know I fired my cables at the same time, so they should have reached you both at the same time. But the cable snagged you first and missed Ryota."

"So?"

"So somehow one cable reached you before the other. I know in my action, I was trying to save you both. But subconsciously, I chose you." She heard Takumi sniffle quietly as his hand came up to his face briefly as if to wipe something off. He leaned against Rai's arm, but she moved it to wrap around Takumi's shoulder. They sat together for a while as Rai finished the soup in her bowl. Takumi gently took the bowl from her hand and placed the empty dish back on the tray.

"I think you should go out for a bit. I know the doctor said to stay off your leg for a while, but that was three days ago. You've got people who care about you, remember?"

"I know."

"Just… don't stay cooped up in here for too long, ok?"

"I promise," she assured him.

"I'll be meeting Sati and Hiro for lunch later at the new restaurant in the plaza. You should come and join us, when you're ready." With that, Takumi shut the door behind him, returning Rai to her solitude.

* * *

"Are you sure it was a good idea to just leave Rai at the inn?" Sati asked, her voice and expression full of concern.

"She came back from the brink of death, Sati. She'll bounce back from this," Hiro said confidently as they waited in line to get into the restaurant.

"She'll come out when she's ready. We shouldn't push her," said Takumi.

Hiro nodded in agreement as the line finally moved to inside the restaurant. It was exceptionally crowded inside and the trio just managed to find a table in the corner at the back of the restaurant. A stressed and visibly overworked waitress stopped at their table briefly to place glasses of water and menus, apologizing for her slow service and remarking how overcrowded they were compared to normal. As the three of them browsed through the menu, a large broad-shouldered man with a burn scar over his shoulder approached the table.

"I'm sorry, but the restaurant is just so crowded. Do you mind if I take this seat?" he asked, gesturing to one of the two empty seats at their table.

All three looked up from their menus to the man. Before either Sati or Takumi could say anything to him, Hiro suddenly shot up from his seat and slammed his fist angrily on the table. "You!" he shouted, venomously spitting. This drew no attention from the rest of the patrons, however, as their own conversations filled the restaurant with enough noise to drown out Hiro's shouting. "Give me one reason why I don't gut you now!" He reached for his swords, preparing to draw his blades.

"Now, now, Hiro, easy!" the man raised one hand and gently ushered Hiro to sit down. "You don't want to cause a scene in such a public place."

"I-it's you, you're the one who restored my bending," Sati gasped.

"What?" Hiro yelled.

"See Hiro? I'm not such an awful master, aren't I?"

"Master?" Takumi asked before he suddenly gasped in realization. "Wait… that means you're…"

"Goro," the man answered. "I'm sure my dear Rai and Hiro have told you all about me," he smiled, taking a seat at the end of the small table. "I'd put those swords away boy. You wouldn't want to cause a scene in such a public place, would you? Besides, I have my men in places all around this building, even in the restaurant with us. Try anything and they'll kill you and your little friends. Now please. Sit. Down." Goro said those last two words firmly as he slammed his hand onto the table, forcing Hiro down to his seat.

A shiver went up his spine as Hiro let out a shuddered breath. This was nothing like the bloodbenders they had encountered at the Black Cliffs. Goro's bloodbending made it feel like there were tiny little snakes slithering underneath your skin.

"Rai's not coming if that's what you were hoping," Takumi said firmly, hoping Goro would believe him while also silently hoping that Rai wouldn't take his earlier advice.

"That is most unfortunate, I'll admit, but I have a feeling my dear will be joining us shortly."

"What can I get you folks tonight?" the same waitress from before asked, holding out a pad of paper and pencil.

"Oh, we're not ready yet. Thank you," Goro waved her off with a smile. "You all deserve some fine dining after the hardships you've had to endure. My treat."

"What are you playing at?" Hiro muttered through angrily grit teeth, narrowing his eyes viciously at his former master. "Whatever game it is you're planning, it's not going to work. Rai won't fall for it."

"If you're not going to be civilized, you're free to leave. Just, well, I won't be directly responsible for what happens to you if you refuse my hospitality," Goro remarked, not even looking at Hiro and instead browsing through the menu.

Hiro looked to the door then back at Sati and Takumi. The entire restaurant could be filled with Goro's men, hidden in plain sight. He knew he couldn't just leave Sati and Takumi in Goro's clutches and that Rai would never forgive him if he did. So, he begrudgingly settled into his seat.

"Now then, what are you all having? We don't want to keep our waitress waiting after all. I'm thinking that I'll have the spicy shrimp pasta. Yes, that sounds delicious." He closed his menu and placed it on the table before looking at the others, clasping his fingers together in a casual business-like manner. "So, I'm curious about you. How do such… disjointed individuals come to be companions to the Avatar?" Goro suddenly blinked in surprised and brought his index finger to his lips, "Oh, that's right. It's a secret. Shh…"

"W-well…" Takumi began nervously. Something about this man frightened him more than Ryota had and it left him with this unnerving feeling that left him utterly paralyzed in his presence.

Goro sighed impatiently, yet non-threatening and encouraged Takumi to continue, "Go on, speak up, boy. Why don't you just start with your name?"

"T-Takumi," he stuttered.

"Takumi. And how is it a young lad like you came to her? Why aren't you with your family?"

"Well, it's a long story but, basically Rai saved my life," Takumi answered, gulping nervously.

"She did, did she? I'm not surprised. My Rai has always had a soft spot for strays in need. A natural protector, she is," Goro casually remarked, handing his menu to the waitress and giving her his order.

"Don't call her that," Hiro spat. "She's not yours!"

Goro took a sip of his water and narrowed his eyes at Hiro before placing the glass back on the table. He leaned forward over the table, resting his elbows on the surface. "It seems you've forgotten an important lesson, Hiro: how to hold your tongue. I'd remember if I were you, or will I need to remind you?"

* * *

With a small flame in her palm lightning the room, Rai reached over to the clock on the bed side table. It was well past one in the afternoon. They should surely have been back by now. She set the clock back in place and put both her hands on the bed behind her, lifting herself to her feet. Her leg still ached, but it was still getting better. She could put some weight on it, but still kept most of her weight on her other leg, resulting in a noticeable limp as she walked. When she stepped out into the street, she had to raise her hand to shield her eyes from the bright rays of the sun. That's what she got for spending three days in a dark room. She greeted Haku in the stables next to the inn before setting off into the city. When she arrived in the plaza, she noticed the new restaurant Takumi had mentioned with a long line up of people waiting to get in. Perhaps they were still waiting or had only just gotten a seat, she reasoned. She stepped inside, pushing past the people gathered at the podium waiting to be seated. Bobbing and weaving her way through the waiters and waitresses coming and going, she spotted her friends sitting at a table in the back. As she got closer, she noticed a fourth person with them. Her body immediately froze when she realized who it was; all the sound of bustling patrons around her suddenly died out and all she could hear was a high pitched ringing noise that grew louder and louder with each passing second.

Goro turned, noticing her presence and smiled. "Aaaah, Rai, how kind of you to join us this afternoon. There's a seat still open for you as well." He motioned to the empty seat next to him, gesturing for her to take the seat.

Her stomach turned uncomfortably as he spoke to her in that nonchalant manner, as if everything was all right between them, as if every wrongdoing was so easily forgotten. She thought that when she saw him again, she would be ready, that she wouldn't hesitate to end him. But right here, right now, all she could feel was the stinging pain of every bruise, every scar he inflicted on her. When she finally returned to her senses, her eyes narrowed murderously like a feral beast as she yelled, "You!"

"It's been so long, my dear. I see that life has been kind to you," he remarked, glancing at her companions before returning his unsettling gaze to her. "Love the new hair. You've certainly grown into a beautiful young woman," he smirked, licking his lips.

She shuddered in disgust as his eyes seemed to pierce through her and admire her body. Even with her thick layers and baggy clothes, she still felt uncomfortable in his gaze. But she wouldn't let it show; she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of knowing how much effect he still had on her. "Yes... it has. And now it's delivered you right to me!" she declared, bending out her arm blades.

"Ah, ah, ah!" Goro cautioned, waving his index finger back and forth, giving her a disapproving _tsk_ before motioning to the patrons all around them. "Not in public, my dear. It's rude. Have you forgotten your manners so quickly?"

Rai looked around her and noticed the few civilian eyes that are on. She wouldn't have cared if there were witnesses; she would easily disappear into obscurity. But she noticed some patrons and wait staff subtly reveal their weapons from inside their jackets and sleeves in a threatening manner. Of course Goro hadn't come alone, she realized. This was planned; he was expecting her. She growled in defeat before begrudgingly sheathing her blades "What game are you playing at?"

"Just a nice afternoon lunch with company," he answered plainly, but Rai knew there was more to that. This was all a game, a sick game. It always was with him. "It's my treat, so order anything you like."

"Unless it's your head on a platter, I'm not interested."

"Tsk tsk tsk," he sighed in disappointment while pouring himself a drink. She hated it when he made that noise, and him acting so casual about it only made her want to kill him more. "Such a temper. I'm looking forward to softening that. It's just too bad we could not do business together. After all, you've proven yourself most formidable. Even helped me remove a thorn in my side."

"What are you talking about?" she demanded. She was far from being in the mood to play his games.

Goro casually took a sip of his drink before speaking, "That nutcase of a slaver, Ryota. I really must thank you for removing that inconvenience."

"How do you know about that?"

"Look, sweetheart," she mentally cringed at his pet name for her, "if you want to talk and be civilized, then take a seat and we'll talk. Otherwise, you're bothering me and my guests."

Rai glanced at her companions, noticing that Hiro was just barely holding himself back while Takumi and Sati sat uncomfortably. "Then we'll leave." Under normal circumstances, Rai would just kill him now and be done with it. But that was when she originally planned on being alone when she confronted him. Now she had companions, friends! Friends that she couldn't let get caught in the crossfire.

Goro's smiling facade faded as he frowned disappointingly at her. "Please, have a seat," he said, raising his hand and twitching it slightly, "I insist."

Rai gasped under her breath as she realized she couldn't move. Her skin felt like it was being pricked by a thousand needles. She tried pulling away from his influence, but her body disobeyed her. In an instant, images flashed in her mind of every time he used his bloodbending on her, every time he made her do things for him… to him… In an uncharacteristic and panicked tone, Rai just managed to choke out, "Stop that."

Goro simply chuckled at her half-plea, half-demand, amused by how easily he could affect her and leave her begging. "If you won't be civil, then I'll just have to make you behave. You remember how to behave, don't you?" He turned his hand, palm facing up, as he beckoned her closer to him with his index finger. Despite her attempts to resist and struggle against his hold over her, her feet started moving on their own, stepping closer towards him.

"Stop it, Goro. Right now!" Hiro shouted as he leaned forward from his seat. However, he pulled back when he felt something cool and sharp press against his neck. He looked up at the waiter that appeared next to him, holding the small dagger to his throat. Though his mind was screaming in defiance, Hiro leaned back into his seat. The waiter sheathed the dagger and walked off, serving another table as if nothing had happened.

Goro brought Rai closer to the table and she was only a few steps away from the seat next to him. She stopped, planting her feet firmly in the ground, unwilling to move under his command no matter how much it hurt. She would never sit next to him. Goro sighed in disappointment as his efforts to guide her forward proved fruitless. He sat up from his seat and began walking around her, as if to examine every part of her. Rai tried to turn around and face him, maybe even punch that creepy smirk off his face, but he held out his hand, firmly keeping her still in place. "That stunt with Ryota...very impressive if I do say so myself. Even my best assassins couldn't reach the likes of him, and yet you managed with minimal help. Or did he just off himself for you?"

"What's it to you?" she asked, as he came back around to her front.

"Just wanted to thank you for your help in removing that thorn in my side. Perhaps in the near future, you and I could engage in more...intimate business ventures." As he finished his sentence, he reached his hand out and took a hold of one of her blonde strands. He brought his face closer to hers, running her blonde locks against his cheek before bringing it to his nose and inhaling deeply through his nose.

Her stomach turned and she felt herself just barely holding in her disgust at just how much he was getting off on this. With all of her strength, she just managed to break out of his control and smack his hand away. This left Goro visibly shocked, but his expression quickly darkened into a mixture of grim intentions and lust. "You've gotten stronger," he said, reasserting his control as he took her chin into his hand. She tried pulling away, but Goro kept her in place more firmly this time and kept a tight grip on her chin, forcing her to look him in the eye. "Good, that'll make it all the more fun. When we're finished, you'll be begging for me and you'll realize just how much you want this too."

The corner of Rai's mouth twitched angrily and through grit teeth, she muttered, "What I'd like is your head on a platter." Goro merely chuckled in amusement at her defiance and released her. "And why would you want my brother dead?"

Goro returned to his seat. "He became a liability and was more trouble than his services were worth. He may have been an excellent supplier in the trade, but he was unstable and unhinged. I can't be associating with someone so unreliable. But, if I can't interest you with a beverage, then consider your debt to me, settled," he said, taking another sip of his water.

"Debt? The only thing I owe you is a blade in your throat!"

"Mm," he grunted as he swallowed his last sip, pointing his index finger at Rai. Once he swallowed, he continued speaking, "My apologies. That last statement was directed at her." He gestured to Sati.

"What does Sati have to do with this?"

"She can tell you, I'm sure," Goro replied, urging Sati to speak.

Sati's blue eyes were wide in fear and apprehension, whether of Goro or fear of Rai's anger one couldn't be sure. But the uncharacteristically quiet airbender spoke, her voice stuttering as she struggled to get her sentence out. "H-he was the one wh-who restored my bending…" she admitted, then braced herself for the result. "I'm sorry, Rai! I didn't know who he was then!" she quickly added with tear-filled eyes.

Rai held her hand out, gesturing to Sati to stop talking or even perhaps to let her know it was ok and that she wasn't mad. Either way, Sati cast her eyes down at the table as Rai continued speaking. "Why would you do that when you ordered the attack on her to begin with?"

"An error on my part, I'll admit. I never actually ordered anyone to attack her. I was simply playing around with the idea. But that idiot Manta didn't seem to know the difference between orders and a hypothetical situation. Fear not, my dear. I dealt with him personally and he won't be a bother to either of us anymore. As to why I helped her, maybe I'm not as bad of a master as you thought," he said, cracking a smile at her.

Rai grit her teeth angrily. "You. Are. Not. My. Master. You are a monster."

Goro let out an amused laugh followed by a sarcastic slow clap. "Everyone has a monster inside them." He smiled darkly at Rai as he stood up and marched over to her. "Isn't that right," he leaned in close and whispered into her ear so that only she could hear, "Avatar?"

The feeling of his hot breath on her skin made her sick to her stomach. But she wouldn't let that show. As he pulled away and smiled at her, she narrowed her eyes into a vicious glare. "I am what you made me."

"And I'm so proud," he grinned widely. "And now that we're together again, we can go home… the both of us."

"I am not going anywhere with you," she muttered, still through angrily grit teeth.

Goro's smile dropped as his expression morphed into a serious one. "Yes you are. You've had your fun, but now it's time for you to come home. You don't know how much I've missed you."

"I will never go anywhere with you," she spat at him, reaffirming her previous statement.

"You don't have a choice...You never did."

"Rai!" Takumi called out, noticing her begin to lose her temper.

"Stay right there, boy!" Goro quickly turned and pointed his finger at Takumi. "You're forgetting your place, just like she always did," he said, turning back to Rai. After a second, Goro chuckled "Look at them, my dear sweet Rai. Even if they tried, they can't stop me from taking back what is mine. Like anyone else who crosses me, they are powerless. Just as you will always be powerless. And here I thought you learned your lesson after the last time with what's her name. But you seem to have replaced one with three more, so I'd say that you got a good bargain out of that."

Rai gasped at the mention of Kala. She clenched her hands into fist and growled under her breath between laboured inhalations. In a split second, she drew back her fist and punched Goro in the chest, sending him flying directly through the wall of the restaurant and rolling into the plaza outside. Suddenly, her eyes turned bright white and a sphere of swirling air surrounded her. The strong currents overturned tables and chairs, causing patrons to panic and flee. Rai dashed forward through the hole, the swirling winds ripping the hole wider. As she hovered high above the plaza, she drew back her hand and unleashed a torrent of flames down to Goro. Citizens fled as Goro drew water from a nearby fountain to douse the flames. In a loud, booming and echoed voice, she yelled, "Kala! Her name was Kala! And you don't get to talk about her!"

Goro chuckled slightly while coughing and wiping the dirt off his face. "O-Okay, let's talk about this," he said, holding his hands up in surrender in a clear attempt to make himself look like the wronged party.

"No! No more talking!" The earth shook around Goro as boulders rose up from the ground around him and hovered in the air around Rai. The boulders floated around her in a circle and with sharp movements of her arms, one by one they flew towards Goro at high speed. He rolled out of the way with surprising agility, letting the boulders hit the ground harmlessly. Goro sprang to his feet, facing the Avatar with the utmost defiance in his eyes.

Back in the restaurant, Hiro quickly took advantage of Rai's sudden attack and flipped the table over onto two of Goro's disguised henchmen. "Come on!" he shouted, running for the exit Rai had created, followed quickly by Sati and Takumi. One of Goro's men, the one disguised as the waiter that had threatened Hiro, rushed towards them with a dagger in each hand, but Sati easily blew him away with a powerful gust of wind. When they got outside, the stood back in awe as Rai continued unleashing wave after wave of elements onto Goro, who either deflected or avoided the attacks.

In the midst of the fight, Takumi noticed the few civilians hiding behind the corners of buildings or watching the spectacle from windows. Each of them had a shocked expression on their face and pointed up at Rai in wonder. "She has to stop! She's drawing attention!"

Hiro was about to say something, but was interrupted by a sudden flash of white light. He turned to his right and noticed a young man with a camera, having just taken a picture. Hiro quickly seized the camera and smashed it beneath his foot.

"Hey!" the man cried.

"Beat it!" Hiro glared, scaring him off easily. He noticed another person with a camera just a few steps away, and moved towards him, but Sati placed a hand on his shoulder to stop him.

"There's no point, Hiro! Even if you were able to destroy every camera in Ba Sing Se, too many people have already seen this!"

Rai continued unleashing all her might onto Goro. But each strike, guided by pure rage and hatred, never seemed to hit its intended target. Noticing the growing crowd, Goro smirked confidently and yelled up at Rai, "No longer hiding, Avatar? Finally going to show the world your true colors?!"

Rai blinked in surprise at his words as she suddenly became aware of the crowd of people gathered around them, but still far enough to avoid getting caught in the crossfire. Slowly, she began to realize that she was what they were all staring at.

"Seems you're left with a choice, Avatar! So what'll it be? Your vendetta or your precious anonymity?"

In her rush and angered state, Rai struggled to maintain a coherent thought. She knew she couldn't choose one without losing the other. Her mind was filled with too many thoughts, each one trying to shout over the other, as if beckoning her to listen to them. She gripped her head and cried out in pain as the thoughts became louder and louder to the point where she couldn't focus on what was around her. She doesn't think; she acts. In a gust of wind, she flew up over the walls of Ba Sing Se and disappeared into the distance. Hiro, Sati and Takumi ran off back to the inn to retrieve their animals in a desperate attempt to catch up to her.

Goro smiled over his victory as he watched her disappear before quietly muttering to himself. "I win again, slave."

"Could it be?"

"Was it really?"

"It had to be!"

"That was the Avatar!"

"The Avatar has returned!"

As the citizens of Ba Sing Se began buzzing over the revelation, Goro was able to slip back into the shadows. Upon returning to his hideout in the city, one of his men greeted him. "She got away, sir. What do we do now?"

"Not to worry, that was all part of the plan," Goro answered casually.

"Plan? You mean you wanted her to run?"

"I just had to push her buttons enough to push her over the edge so she'd slip up. Soon, the whole world will know that the Avatar has returned."

"I'm not sure I understand, sir," his henchman said.

"If there's one thing I know my sweetheart values more than anything, more than her friends or her vendetta against me, it's her anonymity. She's had all this time to come forward as the Avatar, but she didn't. What does that tell you?" he asked, but his henchmen merely shrugged his shoulders. "Ugh, it means she doesn't want to be found. Now that that's gone, she'll do whatever it takes to keep from being discovered, even if it means crawling on her hands and knees and begging me to take her back. Make sure you boys help spread the word: the Avatar is back."

* * *

 **God, I cannot tell you how creepy and just gross I felt while writing Goro. I mean, I've had fun writing crazy villains before, but I seriously felt so creeped out writing this one. Seriously, he's a disgusting creep... and it only gets worse in the next chapter.**

 **Next chapter: Rai confronts her former master, but for all her Avatar powers, Goro may very well break her will.**


	22. Breaking the Chains

**We are finally here, guys. I honestly didn't think I'd make it this far and actually finish this story. Part of me thought it was gonna end up like my Randy Cunningham story and just end with a hiatus. And I'm glad it didn't!**

 **I want to thank all of you for sticking through with the story and hope you've all enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it. I also must thank one of my best friends, Powershade117 for his help in putting the majority of this story together.**

 **Now, before you proceed to reading, I must warn young readers that this chapter may not be appropriate for them. There are some strong visuals and suggestive language that might not be suitable for the youngins.**

* * *

 _She was back here again. After so long, he finally got a hold of her again. At his command, she removed her clothes and stood still as he examined every inch of her. He voiced his approval at how she had grown and how her body developed, licking his lips pleasurably. She shuddered in fright and stiffened as he ran his hands down her body. When he came back up, he pressed his chest against her back and she could feel his hardened length pressing against her rear. She shut her eyes as tears rolled down her cheeks, barely choking back a sob. He noticed this and brought his mouth to her ear, whispering in it. "You don't know how long I've been waiting for this. Just relax. You might just get some pleasure out of this too," he encouraged. She released the breath she had been holding in this entire time as he brought his mouth to her cheek and licked the side of her face. The sob she held in finally escaped past her lips as he grabbed her by her ponytail and roughly pushed her onto his bed, all the while causing her hair tie to unravel and release her blonde locks. As she propped herself up on her hands, she felt his rough, calloused ones roughly grip her hips and lift them up, causing her to yelp in shock… and whimper in terror. He leaned forward to whisper in her ear again. "Now, be a good girl and do what I say."_

 _She inhaled shakily and gripped the sheets between her fingers. With a choked sob, she shut her eyes, more tears trailing down her cheeks in the process, as she quietly squeaked, "Yes, master." She continued gripping the sheets tightly as she felt him thrust painfully into her. He kept going, not even giving her a chance to get used to it and eventually, she couldn't hold in her sobs._

* * *

"NO!" Rai shouted loudly and sat up with so much force that it quickly frightened away the small fox deer that had been sniffing her. Her body shivered as the images in her dream - no, her nightmare - were still fresh in her mind. She quickly wrapped her arms around herself, reassured by the presence of her clothes, that the nightmare was not real. She trembled at the thought of how real it all felt and even more so at the thought that Goro could get into her head so easily and reduce her to… this: a crying, terrified mess. She thought she was so strong, that she would be ready to face him, but she wasn't ready at all! One touch, one whisper in her ear and it was like she was back there in chains. She wasn't strong enough… She'd never be strong enough; she'd never be free of him.

When she finally calmed her erratic and panicked heartbeat, she observed her surroundings. The last thing she remembered was being in Ba Sing Se, but now she was in the middle of a dense forest that looked completely untouched by humans. The raised herself high into the air on a pillar of earth to see where she was, but couldn't even see Ba Sing Se in the distance in any direction. She remembered running, but she didn't think she'd gotten that far away. And she had left her friends behind as well. She couldn't think straight in the Avatar State, not in that moment when so many thoughts and feelings were flooding her mind. All she could think to do was get away, get away so she could think clearly.

How long had she been unconscious? Hours? Days? Her friends surely would not have stayed in Ba Sing Se after that and she knew they'd have to be on the search for her. But where even was she? She had to get her bearings, figure out where she was and how long it had been. She spotted a small town in the lower valley and lowered her pillar of earth back to the ground. As she reached the edge of town, she quickly pulled her large hood over her head. Her secret was out; the world knew she existed now and she didn't want to be recognized. As she cautiously stepped into town, some of the civilians she passed by looked at her. For a moment, she feared the spark of recognition in their eyes, but sighed in relief as they returned their focus to their original tasks.

She moved through the town relatively unnoticed, but still kept her hood up and a watchful eye out. Ahead, she spotted a newsstand and quickly grabbed one of the newspapers. Rai quickly glanced at the date, seeing that it had been two days since Ba Sing Se. Had she really been out for that long? As her eyes moved down the page, she wasn't surprised when she found a picture of herself - albeit a very unfocused and blurry because of the wind that had been swirling around her - plastered beneath a headline in all capital letters, "THE AVATAR RETURNS".

"Hard to believe, eh?" the newsstand operator asked, noticing Rai's fixation on the paper. She said nothing, but looked up at him to acknowledge his presence. "People had been saying for years now that the Avatar never got reincarnated after Korra. Turns out he was just in hiding!" Rai cocked her eyebrow in confusion at his choice of word: "he". She returned her focus to the picture. Between the lack of focus in the clarity of the picture and her thick layers of clothes, it was awfully hard to see for sure if the subject was male or female. She mentally sighed in relief; that would at least make it harder for people to properly identify her.

"Yeah, hard to believe," she responded to the owner.

"Hard to tell in the picture, but he's gotta at least be a teenager! The question on everyone's mind is why he hasn't come forward at all?"

"Probably didn't want to be found," she commented.

"Why wouldn't the Avatar want to be found?" he asked.

"Well, maybe she doesn't want to live her life based on what other people want. Who says she has to be the Avatar?" she blurted out, before realizing what she had said.

"'She'? You think it's a girl?" the owner pulled over one of the copies and took a closer look at the photo. "Oh yeah, I guess that could be a girl too."

Rai mentally cursed at herself for that slip. If people were thinking the Avatar was male based on the picture, she was more than happy to let them think that. She had to be careful not to give people the idea that the blurry figure might be a girl. During an absentminded glance down the street, Rai quickly spotted a trio of men in navy and white uniforms walking towards her. She cursed under her breath and quickly ducked into a nearby alleyway. She'd recognized those uniforms anywhere; she had spent several years avoiding them and their organization. But now that the world knew for sure that she existed, she should have known that the White Lotus would be searching for her more extensively than before.

Cautiously, she poked her head out from behind the corner and sighed in relief at the sight of the White Lotus agents questioning other villagers. They weren't here for her… We'll, technically they were here for her, they just didn't know she was what they were looking for. Either way, she couldn't risk sticking around when the White Lotus were here. She was able to avoid the White Lotus easily, but made sure not to look too suspicious as she slipped out of town and back into the wilderness. Unfortunately, in her haste to get away, she had completely forgotten to figure out what village that was and where she was.

If it really had been two days, then her friends would be closing in on her soon enough. They would have followed the direction she flew off in certainly. She knew Goro wouldn't pursue her. No, he would wait for her to come to him. Everything was a power play to him and she knew that he knew if she wanted to settle things once and for all, she would have to find him. Part of her was unwilling to seek him out, unwilling to give him the satisfaction of knowing that she was looking for him.

Her body suddenly trembled and shook uncontrollably as the images from her earlier dream flashed across her mind. The feeling of his hands on her body, his skin against hers; it sickened her. She slumped to her knees and wrapped her arms around herself, trying to regain any sense of fleeting security she had. As she choked back her tears, she felt someone gently place their hand on her shoulder. When she looked up, she expected to see one of her companions having finally caught up to her, but instead she saw only a blue hued transparent woman.

"Korra…"

"Rai," the apparition began with tender and caring eyes, "Tell me what's wrong."

"I thought… I thought that when the time came, that I'd be strong enough. I had been planning for this day so long, but… but…"

"Things don't always go the way we plan, Rai. When I was young, I thought I was ready to be the Avatar, but I was far from it."

"This isn't about being the Avatar, Korra! I spent years building these walls around me to be strong, so that I would be tough enough to face him when the time came! But in an instant, he just broke those walls down like they were nothing! How is it he can get to me so easily? I'll never be free of him, not when he can get inside my head without an effort!" she cried, tears slipping through her shut eyes as she tightly gripped her head with both hands.

Korra closed her eyes and sighed. "I know you once said that I could never understand you and what you've gone through, but I might be able to help you here. You let me guide you once before, let me do it again," she whispered tenderly. Rai looked up at her predecessor silently, allowing the previous Avatar to speak. "I know what it's like to carry the scars and trauma with you wherever you go. When I fought the Red Lotus and they poisoned me, I felt completely and utterly broken and shattered. I didn't feel like an Avatar; I didn't even feel much like myself anymore. And even though I was physically fine, I carried that fear, the scars with me for three years. I was so afraid of what might have happened that day that I let my fear of it and Zaheer control me. It wasn't until I confronted him and put what happened behind me that I finally was able to fully recover and reconnect with Raava."

"Being poisoned is hardly the same," Rai said.

"I know," Korra answered tenderly. "I know being poisoned is nothing compared to what he's put you through and I don't mean to compare our traumas. But right now, you're still carrying that trauma with you and you want to be free of it. But you will never be free of it until you confront the source. Take it from someone who knows, once you do, your road to recovery can finally begin."

"But…" Rai hesitated.

"But what?" Korra asked, gently encouraging Rai to speak.

"I'm… I'm afraid," she whispered in shame. "As strong as I am, I'm afraid that I won't be strong enough to fight him, not when he can so effortlessly break me down like this!"

"Rai, it's all right to be afraid. But you aren't in this alone." With those final words, Korra faded away. Rai reached her hand out, not ready for the spirit to disappear yet. From behind her, Rai suddenly heard a familiar hiss and turned to see Haku running towards her, followed by the rest of their menagerie.

"Rai!" she heard them call out to her. She stood silently in place as they rushed towards her, relief on each of their faces that they had finally found her. Takumi and Sati were quick to greet her with a tight and relieved hug, while Hiro kept his usual respectful distance and merely contained a sigh of relief at seeing her.

"Rai, what happened in Ba Sing Se," Takumi began as he pulled away.

"The whole world knows now," Hiro added.

"The Air Nomads are already calling everyone back to the temples to help the White Lotus look for you!" Sati exclaimed, her expression one of worry.

"What do we do now?" Takumi asked as the three companions looked to her for her decision.

"I don't care," Rai muttered, her eyes narrowed in determination.

"What?" Hiro asked.

"I played right into his hands, just like he planned. The only reason he brought up Kala was because he knew I would lose it. When I realized just what was going on, I should have just killed him then and there! But… I hesitated; I couldn't focus and I just had to get away from everything so I could think straight. And he counted on that! But it's not going to happen again!"

"What do you want to do?" Hiro asked, ready for whatever task she needed done.

"I can't think about what the world knows now. I need to finish what I started." She turned to her three companions, each waiting on her words. "When I planned for the day I met Goro again, I always envisioned myself alone. The last thing I want is to force you to help me; this isn't your battle. But, I don't think I can do this without you," she whispered, her eyes pleading with them.

"We've stood by you all this time. We're not leaving you now," Hiro replied firmly.

"Yeah, we're with you, Rai," Sati smiled.

Takumi reached forward and took Rai's hand in his, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"Goro won't be easy to find. He'll have left Ba Sing Se by now," Hiro said.

"I know where to find him," Rai said.

"You do?" asked Takumi.

"Everything Goro does is part of his game with me. He won't come looking for me; he'll want me to come to him. He'll wait somewhere that's significant to both of us."

"And where's that?" Sati asked.

Rai moved towards Haku and quickly mounted his saddle. "Where it all began." Rai rode silently in the lead as the others trailed behind her. They didn't know where they were going, so they had to follow her closely.

"She said 'where it all began'. What does that mean?" Takumi asked Hiro as Kiwi and Griffith ran side by side and Daisy flew over their heads.

"A lot of bandit cells usually move around to avoid authorities, but if they find a good spot that's hidden well enough, they'll call it home," Hiro explained.

"So, when she said 'where it all began', she means," Sati began, only for Hiro to continue.

"Where Goro's main camp used to be, where Kala died and Rai discovered she was the Avatar."

They stopped in a small clearing, which Hiro noted was just short of their destination.

"You're sure you want to come? Wouldn't have pegged you as willing to help me kill someone," Rai said to the Nomad.

"I know I said a lot of things when we first met and looking back at them now, I feel somewhat ashamed at how naive I was to what you've gone through and selfish for always pushing you. But after meeting Goro and seeing just how awful that man is, I understand. He needs to be stopped and I'll support whatever you decide," Sati smiled with determination.

Rai returned a smile to the optimistic airbender before speaking in a serious tone. "Goro will be unlike anything you've ever had to fight, Sati. He's not the kind of person who will kill you to put you out of your misery. He likes to play with his prey and he'll hurt you because he knows it'll hurt me. If you have to get away, get away, do you understand me? If I tell you to leave and abandon me, you do it." Sati opened her mouth to protest to this, but Rai quickly continued. "You said you'd stand by my decision." Sati closed her eyes and sighed in defeat, only managing a simple nod to acknowledge Rai's request. Rai then moved over to Takumi, who had been adjusting his bow and arrows. "You're staying here."

"Wh-what?" Takumi cried, standing up sharply.

"You're not coming, you're going to stay here," Rai repeated firmly.

"Why? I'm not going to get in the way!" he protested.

"It's not that you'll get in the way. I can't focus on fighting Goro if I'm spending half my time worrying about you."

"Rai, you said you needed us and now you're telling me you don't want me to come with you?"

"Someone already used you to get to me and they succeeded! And you almost died because of it! I won't put you in that position again!" Rai loudly shouted, her angry tone just gently masking a hint of fear in her voice. She noticed Takumi flinching at the sudden raising of her voice, so she took a deep breath and spoke more calmly while placing a hand on his shoulder. "Please, I'll fight better knowing you're out of the danger."

Takumi sighed in defeat and dropped his bow to the ground. "Fine," he muttered, conceding defeat.

"It's for the best, trust me," she said, before turning to Hiro and Sati, both ready to follow her lead. "Let's go."

As they moved through the woods, Sati spoke up, "Is it really a smart idea to just walk in? Out in the open?"

"Goro's expecting us, so there's no point wasting our time with a sneak attack. Besides, if he fell for a sneak attack, he would have fallen for one a long time ago," Hiro answered.

"But he's got a whole army, doesn't he?"

"He'll be alone," Rai said from ahead of them.

"How can you be so sure?" Sati asked.

"He'll be alone because he'll want our reunion to be more... intimate," Rai replied darkly. "We're almost there, so be ready. I don't think he'll try to bloodbend us right away, but keep your distance from him and each other. There's three of us, but he's only got two hands. If we stay spread out, he won't be able to bloodbend all of us at once."

Sati and Hiro nodded and continued forward, following Rai into an open clearing. As she stepped into the field, Rai couldn't help but move over to a small patch of grass on her right. She bent down to one knee and gently placed her hand on the ground, sadly recalling what had occupied this spot the last time she was in this place.

"Ah, the memories this place brings back." Rai snapped out of her trance at the sound of his voice and immediately stood up as Hiro drew his dual swords. Goro stood opposite to the trio on the other end of the clearing alone, as Rai had surmised. "You came," he grinned, "just like I knew you would. Now, we should really get going. There's so much you and I have to catch up on." He held his hand out towards her as if to beckon her forward to take it.

Rai's feet remained firmly planted in the ground, however. "I meant what I said in Ba Sing Se: I will never go anywhere with you," she repeated firmly.

"Ah, but now it seems you don't have much of a choice. Ever since we were separated, I had been waiting for news of the Avatar's return. But, months went by, soon years and still nothing. You had all this time to come forward, go public, yet you didn't. That told me only one thing: you didn't want people to know what you were. More than anything, you want to stay hidden from the world. But now the world knows about you. Already the White Lotus and Air Nomads are searching every inch of the world for you. But I can hide you from them, my sweet flower, I can hide you from the world. It'll just be the two of us."

Rai grit her teeth angrily and stomped her foot to the ground, raising a line of earth from the ground towards Goro, who easily jumped off the rising earth and landed to the side.

"It seems you've forgotten your manners. I offer you a comfortable life: food, luxury, anything you could ever want! And this is how you treat me?"

"Anything I could ever want?" Rai scoffed. "How about my home? My family?"

"Now, my dear, you know I had nothing to do with that tragedy," he said, feigning sympathy.

"Then what about Kala? Can you bring her back then?" she shouted. In her heart, she knew Kala was dead and that no one could bring back the dead, but she wasn't about to let Goro think he could lure her into his arms with such false promises of granting her heart's desires.

"Now, what happened with Kala was unfortunate, but I-"

"Unfortunate?" Rai shouted angrily. "You had her murdered right in front of me!"

"To teach you a lesson!" Goro shouted back. "A lesson that you clearly need reminding!"

Goro drew his hands up, drawing water from the two waterskins on his back and launching both blobs towards Rai. He tightened his fists, causing the water to harden into sharp icicles. Rai raised a wall of earth to block the icicles, while Hiro easily deflected and sliced through them with his swords and Sati blew them back with a strong gust of wind. Rai launched herself over her rock shield with a blast of fire, ready to fire another blast at Goro. The bandit leader drew water out of a nearby tree and used it to douse Rai's flames. He reformed the water into a long tendril and wrapped it around Rai's ankle, roughly pulling her out of the sky and onto the ground, landing roughly on her back. Hiro came up from the right with his blades at the ready, but Goro easily side stepped and avoided the path of Hiro's blades. As Hiro advanced with one of his blades, Goro took a hold of his wrist, twisted his arm around, forcing Hiro to release the blade, which Goro then took for himself. The dual blades clashed, this time on opposing sides.

"You've certainly come a long way from sweeping in the forge," Goro grinned, almost in pride. "With some more training, you'd make an excellent assassin for me."

"I'd never work for you!" Hiro replied with malice.

Goro was larger, so it was easy for him to push Hiro off with his stolen sword, knocking Hiro to the ground. Goro raised his arm, ready to strike down with the sword, but Rai launched one of her cables towards him. The cable wrapped around the hilt and blade and with a firm pull, the blade was torn from his grip. Sati came at him from behind, knocking him off his feet with a thin blade of air that swept him off his feet. He was back on his feet in an instant however, and pulled even more water from the nearby plant life, surrounding himself with wildly waving tendrils of water.

Hiro and Sati both tried advancing on opposite ends, but Goro was able to sweep them aside. Rai charged head on, bending the tendrils aside and whipping out her arm blades. Goro countered with ice blades of his own. Goro pushed Rai off him just as he did with Hiro, but Rai easily recovered, and swept her hand to the side, causing a pillar of earth to eject from the earth at an acute angle and strike Goro in the side, knocking him to the ground. The three didn't let up and continued their assault.

"ENOUGH!" Goro ducked under attacks from both Rai and Hiro, effortlessly avoiding them. Using that momentum, he put Rai on the defensive with a few swings of his ice blade while tripping up Hiro with his water whip. Seizing the moment, Sati came forward with a gust of wind, but was thrown off when Goro wrapped another whip around her ankles. He then pulled his arm back and yanked the girl off her feet and towards him. Discarding both weapons, Goro reached out with his powers and held Sati aloft in the air with the invisible hand of bloodbending. "As enjoyable as our little game of cat and mouse is, I'm growing impatient. Surrender yourselves...or else," he threatened.

"Let her go!" Rai shouted.

"Wrong answer, my dear! You understand how things like bloodbending and plantbending work, don't you? A waterbender moves the water within the bodies of living things and plants. It's rather easy to pull the water straight out of a plant, and for a while, I often wondered that if I could rip the moisture from plants, could I do the same to a person?" Goro's hand stiffened. At his gesture, Sati lets out a blood chilling scream. Just as Rai and Hiro notice that her clothes are starting to get damp spots in some locations, a glob of water seems to jump from Sati's body, fusing into a single orb suspended above Goro's open palm. Sati slumps over, her eyes glazing as Goro releases his bloodbending hold on her. With a single tired groan, she falls over, but is caught by Goro and held up in his arm. He looks back at the duo with a dark grin spread across his face. "Let's try this again," he said, holding the glob of water out in a taunting gesture.

Rai and Hiro stared in silent shock at what he had just done. "Y-you... you pulled the water from her body? You monster!" she yelled.

"Monster is such an ugly word, my dear. Is that any way to treat your master? Put your weapons down."

Sati groaned weakly and gently cast her eyes in Rai's general direction. "R-Rai…"

"It's going to be all right, Sati. I promise," Rai held out her hand trying to reassure her.

"So...thirsty," she exhaled weakly, her throat parched.

Goro pulled a smaller, but still noticeable amount of water from Sati through her skin to further make his point. This time though, the act elicited a painful hiss from the girl instead of a scream.

"Weapons. Now," Goro repeated.

Rai growled under her breath, but complied, giving Hiro a look to do the same. She removed her cable spool belt and bent the metal plates off her forearms, scattering the pieces to the ground.

Goro chuckled as his gaze focused on Rai. "Good girl."

Rai's face twitched angrily at Goro's remark, but she stayed her hand. Perhaps she should have come alone. She had let foolish optimism convince her to bring support. She thought he might try to bloodbend one of them against her and that she would be able to get around that. But she never would have dreamed it possible for him to do what he just did to Sati! And now because of her, Sati's life was in danger. "Now let her go."

"Tsk tsk tsk." Rai hated it whenever he made that sound and swayed his finger back and forth like she was a petulant child in need of scolding. "You know a slave never makes demands of their master. If I were to do that, you would just attack me again. Besides," he paused, taking a moment to stroke Sati's cheek, an action the weakened girl did not seem to register. "She would make an excellent servant, wouldn't you agree?"

"I won't let you take her!" When they first met, Rai hadn't cared much for the annoyingly bubbly airbender. Even if that's how she still felt, Rai would never let another fall into that position, knowing from personal experience just what it entailed.

"Oh, don't you worry, my dear. I wouldn't even dream of splitting the three of you up. Just how heartless do you think I am? A pity that we seem to be missing one…" Goro trailed off, his mind wandering off to Takumi.

"You leave him out of this too!" Rai shouted defensively.

"Oh, you needn't worry yourself. Your friends are the least of my concerns. For now," he began, discarding Sati and letting her slump to the ground with a soft thud as he slowly approached Rai and Hiro. "Let's get reacquainted with each other."

As Goro made his advance, Hiro quickly jumped in front of Rai, putting himself between her and Goro. "Not another step closer!" he yelled. The unarmed swordsman didn't hesitate to blast a stream of fire towards Goro, who easily doused the roaring flames with the water he had painfully extracted from Sati's body. Goro quickly raised his hand, using his powers to force Hiro to his knees as the firebender struggled fruitlessly against his invisible grip. Behind him, Goro could see Rai start to make a move, so he raised his other hand, forcing her to stand in place.

"Well…," he exhaled contentedly as he looked at his two former slaves under his control. "Just like old times, isn't it? You should be more careful where you fire, my boy. Someone could get hurt." With a slight movement of his fingers, Hiro's arm was suddenly pulled forward and twisted painfully behind his back. Goro merely grinned in delight at Hiro roaring in agony as a sharp and painful snap was heard from his arm. "If this is what it takes to teach you both a lesson," he said, preparing to do the same to Hiro's other arm.

"Stop!" Rai interjected, still unable to move. "Let him go. I'm the one you want anyway."

Goro turned his head towards her, his eyebrow cocking at surprise to her words. He leered at her for a few agonizing moments before shrugging with a smile and roughly pushing Hiro aside with his bloodbending, only for the firebender to land on his broken arm.

"Mmm, very well. So like you to offer yourself in the place of others, as you always did with…" Goro paused for a moment to remember her name, "Kala. I see all these years alone have done little to snuff that noble heart of yours. Always protecting the weak and helpless. Why do you do it?" he asked, while she refused to answer, not that he would have given her a chance since he continued speaking. "You don't owe this world anything, not as yourself or Avatar. Why must you give so much of yourself to them, to people undeserving of your charity? You deserve to be a little selfish. And now that it's just you and me, my sweet, I can give you everything you deserve, anything you want that is within my power. You only need to give me something in return." He held her in his power with one hand while he used the other to softly caress her chin before gripping it firmly, but sensually and forcing her to lock eyes with him.

Though Rai couldn't escape his bloodbending grip entirely, she was able to jerk her chin out of his hand, leaning herself as far away from him as she could even though she hadn't moved at all.

"Relax," he whispered, seizing a hold of her chin again, roughly this time, as his tight grip forced Rai's lips to pucker. "The more you fight, the less fun you'll have." He released her chin and moved around behind her. Rai instinctively tried to turn around, keep him in her sights, but his hold on her was firm and unrelenting. As he hovered behind her, he dove his head down into her skin where her neck and shoulder met, taking in her scent with a loud and obvious sniff. "Oh, you have no idea how much I've missed you, my dear. How much I've been waiting for this day," he said with a delighted sigh, the warm breath escaping onto her skin.

Rai trembled under his grip, sickened by how close he was to her as she struggled to get away. All she could manage was to clench her fists angrily and grumble, "Don't touch me."

She heard him exhale sharply against her skin. He drew back from her neck and grabbed a handful of the dark green fabric of her hood in his hand before swiftly and roughly pulling the long and tattered cloak off her. Rai flinched at the sudden movement, shutting her eyes frightfully while trying to maintain a strong composure. She couldn't let him see her fear; she couldn't let him see that he was getting to her.

"You've grown into such a beautiful young woman," he whispered in her ear sensually, enjoying the reaction he was getting from her. "And yet, you hide it from the world. Such a shame, if you ask me." He stood behind her as he spoke, still whispering in her ear and taking pleasure in how she trembled beneath his touch. He slowly snaked his arms underneath hers and wrapped them around her waist. He brought his head close to hers again, resting his cheek against the back of her head as he mouth hovered over his ear. "Why do you insist on fighting, my little flower? You must be so tired of always fighting." His warm breath against her ear sent an eerie chill up her spine as his hands ghosted over her breasts. "Let me take care of you from now on. I can make you happy and in time, you'll feel what I feel, you'll learn to love me as I love you." With that, he playfully nibbled on her ear lobe, earning a sharp inhale from her as her shoulders stiffened and breathing became more panicked and labored.

"That isn't love; a vile beast like you could never know love."

She heard a sharp exhale escape Goro's nose. His fingers stealthy reached to the two pink strings that tightly tied her wrap and pulled them loose, allowing the pink and green pieces of fabric to gently fall to the ground. Rai barely choked back a shocked and fearful squeal as layer after layer of cloth was slowly removed from her. With nothing holding her yellow tunic together, the two sides of the tunic fell loose and open, revealing the dark tank top she wore beneath it. Goro swiftly kicked her in the back of one knee, forcing her to fall to it. Another, rougher kick to her back sent her onto her stomach. She tried to lift herself off the ground, but Goro quickly planted his foot on the back of her head, pushing her face into the dirt.

"I'm offering you everything you could ever want and you spit in my face? Where have your manners gone? It seems you'll need reminding." He lifted his foot off her head, but would not allow her to get up on her own accord. Instead, he lifted her off the ground entirely, keeping her suspended over the ground with one hand. Still paralyzed under his control, she could do nothing to stop Goro from stepping forward and softly pulling her tunic off her shoulders, allowing the fabric to gather at her elbows and exposing her shoulders and upper arms, still littered with old scars. "Even then, you refused to bend to my will. Do you know what happens to things that don't bend, my dear? They break. And that's what I'm going to do to you," he said, taking her chin in his free hand and lifting it, forcing her to look at him as he spoke. "I'm going to break you until there is nothing left. Taming you is going to be more fun than I originally thought," he chuckled darkly.

Rai overcame her momentary hesitation to retort, "I am no pet to be tamed!" No matter what, she wouldn't let him have the last word; she wouldn't give him that satisfaction.

"Now where have I heard that before? I think you once said the exact words to me so long ago. But this time things will be different. This time, I'll finish what I started." With a malicious grin, his eyes trailed down her body, lingering for a few seconds on her hips. Rai knew what he wanted to do, as he had voiced his intentions so long ago when she was younger, but she deprived him of the chance with her escape. He snickered and moved his hands slowly up her sides, slipping them beneath her tank top and taking pleasure as she trembled and shook under his touch. He brought his face to hers, taking in her scent once again before licking her cheek in one long, drawn out motion. Rai's breath shuddered as the dark memories of his hands on her body return mixing with the images from her earlier nightmare. She shut her eyes, desperately trying to hold in the tears that were threatening to slip out. She wouldn't let him see her cry. At this point, she couldn't be certain if it was the fear and trauma of the memories or his bloodbending that still paralysed her. "You can't say you won't enjoy it. In time, you will. In time, you'll see I'm a good master and you'll enjoy being with me."

Rai grit her teeth angrily at him as he continued to fondle her. "Don't be surprised if you walk in one day and find me dead, because I would rather take my own life than live under your heel again!"

"I'll just have to keep a close eye on you then," he said, gently stroking her cheek with the back of his hand. "Now then, why don't we see exactly how well you've matured over the years."

Goro's hand moved down from her face to her almost completely exposed torso, where he gripped the collar of her tanktop. Brandishing a knife in his other hand, he brought the blade close to her chest, ready to do away with the final barrier that shielded her body from his sight. But before he could make the first cut, he suddenly stopped short as a sharp whooshing sound cut through the air. Goro gasped sharply and grunted as Rai caught sight of a thin arrow shaft sticking out the side of Goro's neck. The knife fell to the ground as his breath hitched and his hand shakily moved to his neck to feel the arrow. Goro and Rai both turned to the direction of where the arrow had come from and spotted a bow-wielding Takumi at the edge of the clearing. Goro released his grip on his tank top and focused his attention on Takumi, ready to bloodbend him, but the boy reacted instantly, firing a second arrow he had already nocked that struck Goro directly into his left eye. The bandit fell to his back and his bloodbending hold on Rai was released. She dropped to the ground on her rear, staring at Goro's lifeless body with wide eyes in shock. Rai was so entirely focused on him that she barely registered Takumi's soft steps coming towards her.

"A-Are you okay, Rai?" he asked, hesitantly, casting his gaze between her and the man had just shot.

Rai's heart was racing and it seemed that all she could hear was her erratic heart beating wildly. Part of her was afraid to tear her eyes away from him, fearful that it was some sort of ruse and that if she did even for a split second, he would be back up on his feet, ready to continue her torment. But with each passing second, he lay still on the ground, dark crimson blood oozing out of his eye, dripping down the side of his face and staining the earth below. Could it have really been that easy. Was he… Was he finally dead?

Takumi approached her cautiously, himself still shaken up, but at the same time worried for Rai. "Rai?" he called out. Still, she did not seem to register his presence, which only caused him to grow more concerned. He stepped closer and reached out his hand to place it on her shoulder. The instant he touched her, she flinched and locked eyes with him. She stared at him with wide eyes for a few seconds as if to take a moment to remember who he was. "Rai, please say something," he urged.

She blinked out of her trance and slowly reached to wrap herself back in her tunic and hugged herself tightly. She hated feeling so exposed and vulnerable, especially when it was by his hand. She hated how he could make her feel like this, reduce her to this. "I-is he dead?" was all she managed to say.

Takumi pulled back and carefully approached the body. He hesitated to reach out and check for a pulse, so instead he resorted to gently poking Goro's arm with one end of his bow. When Goro made no reaction, Takumi jabbed him harder and to confirm for sure, he nudged Goro's head with the bow, causing it to limply nod off to the side, facing away from Rai entirely. "Yeah, yeah I think so," he answered.

Rai released the breath she hadn't realized she was holding and fell onto her back. She held it in as best she could while he was undressing and molesting her, but now she let everything loose as if a dam had opened. She lay there, in the dirt, crying her eyes out and not even trying to control the wailing sobs that escaped her. So many feelings and thoughts were going through her head and it felt like every emotion she had ever bottled up - all the fear, anger, sadness and somewhere mixed in with all three: joy - was finally breaking out uncontrollably. Takumi took a step forward and reached out to comfort her, but stopped when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around and saw that it was Hiro, whose other arm hung limp at his side.

"I'll look after her. Go check on Sati," Hiro said simply.

At the mention of her, Takumi quickly spotted the fallen Sati a few feet away. He rushed over to her, dropping his bow in the process and gently slipped his hand underneath Sati's neck and lifted her head and shoulders into his lap. "Sati," he called, but she didn't respond. "Sati, wake up!" he cried more urgently, giving her a gentle but desperate shake. He sighed in relief when he heard her groan weakly. "Are you ok?"

"Thirsty…" she whispered dryly. Takumi quickly reached for his water bottle and brought it to Sati's lips, allowing her to drink her fill.

Meanwhile, Hiro crouched next to Rai, who had turned over onto her side as she continued sobbing. With his good arm, he reached for her shoulder and whispered, "He's dead, Rai. It's okay… It's over."

* * *

Rai sat on a large rock overlooking a small pond in the woods. Her yellow tunic, pink and green wrap and dark green cloak were folded nearly beside her, leaving her with only her tank top. Takumi appeared and took a seat next to her, silently gazing out at the pond with her.

"I know I disobeyed you," he began. "You told me to stay behind, but I didn't. So, I understand if you're mad at me."

"I'm not mad at you," she said.

"You're not?" he turned his head sharply in shock.

"I never wanted you to know what it's like, Takumi. I never wanted for you to know what it feels like to take a life, even if it was his," she muttered that last word venomously.

Takumi sighed. "Before we met, if someone were to ask me if I could see myself taking a life, I'd probably tell them I couldn't, no matter the circumstances. But that's not what I was thinking about when I did it. When I saw him… doing that to you and about to take it further, I just wanted to make him stop hurting you. I thought he was going to bloodbend me. I-I didn't mean to kill him, I just reacted, but I don't regret it either. I know killing him meant a lot to you, so I'm sorry that I took that away from you."

"All I ever wanted for years was to kill that son of a bitch, to make him pay for what he did to me, to Kala and so many others. I always thought I'd be strong enough, but it turns out I was far from it. Maybe it shouldn't matter who killed him, just that he's finally dead and it's finally over," her voice shook, as if she was still coming to terms with that that meant for her.

"And you're free," Takumi finished for her.

She couldn't help but crack a smile at Takumi's statement. "Free…" she exhaled. That word had been completely foreign to her for so long, and the freedom she had been yearning and fighting for for so long was finally hers.

"So, what do you want to do first?" Takumi asked.

Rai said nothing and instead stood up from her seat on the rock and jumped into the pond. This alarmed Takumi at first, but he relaxed when all she did was float in the pond on her back, enjoying the feel of the cool water against her skin. She closed her eyes and sighed contentedly as she drifted in the water.

The chains were broken.

* * *

 **When Powershade117 and I started working out on this scene, I knew right away that I wanted Takumi to be the one who made the killshot. Call it symbolic or whatever, it just felt right for him to do it rather than Rai.**

 **As for whether Rai's story will continue, that remains to be seen. I haven't decided if I would continue Rai's story or if it even needed continuing. But, I dunno, we'll see.**


End file.
